Hammer and a Heart
by UniqueArtist
Summary: How will Nora Valkyrie handle the truth about her parents? That she is not from Remnant, but from Asgard? This is /kind of/ a crossover, but it is like 88% RWBY/ReNora. Im not too knowledgeable in the Thor comic universe, however, I tried my best with the wonderful aid of Google!
1. Small Start

She once loved him. Though he was willing to spend much of his time with her, his attention was suddenly seduced by Amora. Everyone knew Thor was just looking for adventure in the end.

Feeling disposable, Brunnhilde did not appreciate Thor's behavior.

After their time together, she now avoids Thor at all costs. However, the day that Thor finally sees her, he notices the roundness of her belly. Not that large _yet_ , but obvious on an otherwise fit woman. Yet, to him, she was still beautiful. Her hair, long and strawberry-blonde. Orange at the tips of her hair, complimenting her blue-green eyes which were wide in… _fear?_

He simply stands there, watching her in awe. It is extremely frowned upon in Asgard to become pregnant or have intimacies without a proper relationship or ritual. He himself would face trouble for becoming intimate. Thor **knew** that Brunnhilde was not wed. With this deduction, he then had a feeling.. as though he knew this was his doing.

Above all else, she was a valkyrie. Valkyries live lives of hardship and, more often than not, face life-threatening risks and demands. It is not only rare but also disapproving for valkyries to procreate. Valkyries are the _chosen_ people of Odin, not simply created against his knowledge.

The last time a valkyrie became pregnant, she was exiled by Odin himself, with her memory erased... _twice_. This was over 600 years ago.

Brunnhilde saw Thor stare at her and she began to run away. She was but halfway through gestation, still capable of running safely albeit a slow pace. Why was she running? She knew that there was no possible way to outrun Thor of all people, especially while pregnant.

 _She knew too._

"Wait," Thor called out, jogging after her. "Brunnhilde!"

* * *

 **I know it's not long. It wasn't meant to be, which is why I'm posting two chapters tonight.**

 **This is my first fic in _years!_**

 **If you have any nice and helpful criticisms, please let me know! I write for fun, I don't actually think I'm that good at it..haha..** **However, this story has been stuck in my head for the past few weeks now and i _needed_ to write it down! Thanks for reading.**


	2. Big Beginnings

_The word valkyrie derives from Old Norse_ _**valkyrja**_ _(plural valkyrjur), which is composed of two words; the noun valr (referring to the slain on the battlefield) and the verb kjósa (meaning "to choose"). Together, they mean "chooser of the slain". Other terms for valkyries include óskmey (Old Norse "wish maid"), appearing in the poem Oddrúnargrátr_ _and Óðins meyjar (Old Norse "Odin's maids"), appearing in the Nafnaþulur. Óskmey may be related to the Odinic name Óski_ _(Old Norse, roughly meaning "wish fulfiller"), referring to the fact that Odin receives slain warriors in Valhalla._

 **23 weeks prior.**

"Have you the slightest clue as to what you are doing with your life, son?" Odin seethed, watching as his son was about to exit the palace they call home.

"Father, I am not going against your wishes." Thor laughed, turning around and raising his hands. "May I not have girl friends?" Thor asked calmly. His question was not serious, Thor would spend his time as he pleases, whether Odin liked it or not.

"You are arranged to marry. If you really wish to rule Asgard one day, busy yourself with your skills, not harlots." His voice, deep and loud as he sat upon his mighty chair. To many, he would be intimidating. To Thor, he was simply not understanding him. Odin has the slightest clue who he was about to see.

Outsiders consider the people of Asgard to be immortal, especially those who are god and demigods. However, this isn't true….not exactly. Asgardians age much, much slower. Thor was 324 years old, meaning, he was about the equivalent to a human teenager. Rebelling against his father was quite easy for him.

"I bid you farewell, father." Thor sighed, finally leaving. Odin did not argue, he merely just shook his head in slight disappointment.

Asgard was beautiful. During his simple walk, Thor admired as the daylight reflected off of every gold accent found amongst Asgard's architecture. The sky, clear and nearly white. The water from every pond appeared clear, yet reflected beauty and light with the likeness of crystal. He made his way towards a large structure with gold, red, and silver archways. If not travelling or watching over Valhalla, this is where many of Odin's valkyries spend their time, should they be in Asgard. It is a place of rest, recreation, and skill. This is open to the public as well, therefore, it is not all too strange for Thor to be entering the manor.

Once you enter, it appears to be a library. _The tallest of bookshelves, the heaviest of books, the smartest of Asgardians!_ However, this is not why Thor was here. His presence was requested by a particular lady, one which he had been in the midst of developing feelings for. Walking straight passed the library area, he approached a wide, silver spiral staircase with gold handrails. He glided up the stairs in a matter of seconds, now being at least 60 feet above the main ground. This is the floor where the chosen valkyries may rest. He continued through the large, white hallways until he came across a familiar red door. He tapped gently on the wood.

It opened slowly, revealing a beautiful young woman. "Greetings, Thor! Welcome." She opened the door wider now, leaving him space to enter.

"Good morning Brunnhilde."

"I was expecting you." She smiles as she closes the door.

"Of course you were, I am Thor, a demigod! You should always expect me!" Thor smiled, feigning over-confidence.

"Shut up, _Thora_." Brunnhilde teased. Together they made their way toward the seating area and sat on a large sofa.

"Excuse you, I only wore a skirt _once_ in my life!"

"And it was pink!" She instantly began laughing at the memory.

"I am fond of the color, mind you." Thor shrugged. He did not understand the correlation between colors and gender roles. "I would make for a better valkyrie than you." Thor teased in return.

"Thora Valkyrie!" She shouted. "I'm never calling you anything else ever again!"

"My father will banish you!" Thor threatened, jokingly.

"Your father will banish _you_." Brunnhilde smirked.

The budding romance between the two could be seen from miles away. They spent the rest of that day happily in each others' presence.

 **Present**

"Leave me be." Brunnhilde continued walking, now attempting to hide herself within the dark green hooded cloak she was wearing. The bazaar was too public of a place, she did not want anyone to see her.

"Will you please speak with me? Without running." Thor responded, still easily keeping up with her pace. "Where have you gone?"

"Away." she stated with no emotion in her voice.

"Why?"

"Is it not obvious? ...fustilarian.." Bitterness leaking like venom at the tip of her tongue. "What do you think has happened while **you** were away with Amora?"

"Clearly you are quite angry with me and I apologize for being unaware. However, I refuse to be disrespected." Thor was quite confused, but wanted to reason with her. He knows the obvious; he had gotten her pregnant. But why did she continue to run? " _You_ left _me_ , and I am arranged to marry Amora."

When the two reached a more confined alley, the valkyrie suddenly stopped and turned to him, a threatening look in her eyes.

"If you dare harm _my_ unborn child I will destroy you." she stated, her voice low and words barely escaping between gritted teeth.

"Pardon? I would never cause harm!"

"I do not mean offence, but," Brunnhilde laughed sarcastically, "you simply opening your mouth will cause harm!"

"What do you mean?" Thor looked down at her belly. He was tempted to rub it, to feel the warmth of his unborn child. To feel the electricity beneath his fingertips. "..I would never cause harm to our child…" he whispered.

"You won't meet my child." Brunnhilde crossed her arms. " _Our_ child will not exist to you. Or anyone." Her attitude was beginning to anger Thor.

"I will not allow that!" Thor's voice suddenly became deeper and louder, similar to that of Odin's. Lightning was heard from a distance, which tore the attention of the two away from each other. They eyed the sky.

"Control your emotions, _child_." Brunnhilde scoffed. "You understand just as well as I do that _this_ ," Brunnhilde motioned toward her belly, "should not exist."

"You dare attempt to kill the child?" Thor questioned in a disgusted tone. Impossible!

"What?! **No**! Thor, what has gotten into you?"

"Oh." Thor exhaling a sigh of relief. "I..am unsure..of your plans?"

"I'm a valkyrie. If I do not die during childbirth, I will probably be exiled the moment Odin hears of the news. I must find a way to care for my child in hiding. Or perhaps abandon her somewhere where she will be care for elsewhere.." Brunnhilde thought, trailing off. She obviously had not finishing thinking her plans through.

"I forbid you abandoning our child. I will care for it, and if Odin dares to hurt either of you, I will fight against him myself." Thor was rather stoic during this response. He will put up a fight.

"You? Fight your father, ruler of Asgard, over a bastard child with a woman you do not love? Excuse me if I do not have much faith in your words." Brunnhilde scoffed and feigned laughter, yet again. She knows her fate. Her reality is much harsher than Thor's, he often got what he wanted or fought until he won. He, however, can not win against his own father. They both knew this. She would rather live a harsh reality _by herself_ , as opposed to bringing a harsh reality to all of Asgard. If Odin and his son truly fight, this does not only involve them, but the entire realm itself. The wrath will affect everyone.

"I can reason with him." Thor interjected, after some thought.

"No. This is **exactly** why I did not want you to know of this. I knew you were going to try this." Brunnhilde suddenly felt tears accumulate around the brim of her eyes.

"Brunnhilde… Aye. Relax, it is going to be okay.." Thor suddenly felt guilt, watching the smaller woman in front of him crying. He absolutely hated tears. No one deserves them, except his greatest enemies.

"No, it's not.." She suddenly cried a little harder. "Do you not understand what it is like? Loving someone and knowing you can never be with them… I am referring to my _own_ child. I can never be with him or her… It is impossible. I have yet to meet the innocent soul, but I can already feel the beauty in them. They are perfect. I love them more than I have ever loved anything or anyone, and I can never live to watch them grow..speak, walk, smile.." by the end of this rant, she was somewhat of a blubbering mess. Thor was worried that this may cause a scene, despite them being in an alleyway. He wrapped his arm around her, one hand on his hammer pointed toward the sky, and used Mjölnir to travel. The both of them landed on the roof of a building, where no one can even see them.

"Perhaps we can watch our child grow. Together, I am willing to try, Brunnhilde.." Thor stated, wiping her cheeks. She hiccuped and looked away, tearing her face away from his fingertips.

"It is not possible." She turned around and walked toward the edge of the building, admiring the view. "Only in my favorite dreams, will the three of us be happy together in Asgard, raising our beautiful child."

"Wait.." Thor responded, but Brunnhilde immediately jumped off the edge of the building. He was not alarmed, for all valkyries were strong. She was stealthy, smart, strong, and able to handle jumping from lhigh distances. She enjoyed it quite a bit, actually.

* * *

"Wooo-hoo!" shouted a redheaded child, hanging upside-down off a branch on the top of a tree.

"Nora. You are going to be the first person on Remnant to die from falling off of a tree." Ms. Mei shouted at the seven year old.

"Geez, Miss. Mei!" Nora then let herself fall from the branch, backflipped, and then landed on her feet and hands. She stood up, straightened her uniform, and lookd at the woman. "I'm sure I won't be the _first_ person on Remnant to die falling from a tree!" Nora wiped the remaining dirt off of her green skirt and then beamed a smile at the taller woman, her hands at her sides, mimicking a superhero. Ms. Mei simply sighed in slight frustration. She turned around and crossed her arms.

"Zian! Don't you dare stick your hand in that!" the tall woman shouted, stomping away from Nora and headed towards the small boy. Though she was beginning to lose her patience, her long black hair and perfect form made her look graceful.

Ms. Mei was the caretaker of this particular group of children in the village's orphanage. She was a bit strict, but it is understandable. Kids need structure and guidance, especially Nora. She often found herself in troublesome situations. Despite this, Nora did love Ms. Mei. She was a great caretaker, unlike her last one.

Caretakers are able to care for a group of kids by age. Three caretakers for the newborn-2 year olds, since they were most common. Then there were 2 caretakers for the rest of the age groups: 2-4 year olds, 4-6 year olds, and 6-10 year olds. 10-13 and 13-17 year olds only need one caretaker, since there is not as many. It was quite rare for one reach that age while still living in the orphanage. The orphanage was a somewhat large structure, owning 3 different wings; each wing contained 2 age groups.

Ms. Mei is alone caring for the group of 6-10 year olds because the second caretaker has come across health issues, disabling her from handling children. Instead, Ms. Mei gets the help from her sister, Mrs. Lie, during the day. As she volunteered, she would bring over her son, Ren. He didn't exactly care for spending his time with the other children; he would rather play alone or hide behind his mom.

Recently, Nora Valkyrie has taken a liking to Lie Ren and enjoyed playing with him. He was a little older than her; Lie Ren born on January 27, and Nora was born on August 9th. Unlike the other kids, Ren wouldn't bully her, treat her differently, criticize her, or ignore her. He would merely watch in amusement as she climbed the trees like a sloth-monkey, ran up and down slides, or jumped too high off of swings. She played dangerously- but he did not seem to care. Watching her, he could tell that she was strong and seemingly _unbreakable._ He did, however, have his limits when it came to her safety.

"I bet I could climb up to that roof!" Nora grinned, pointing towards the top of the 3 story building. Ren looked up towards where she was pointing, and actually thought about it.

"Nora no." For the first time in a while, he experienced doubt in her methods of fun.

"Oh c'mon! It's only a _little_ bit taller than the tree. Plus, I grew since my birthday!"

"It's much taller. And your birthday was only two weeks ago, you look the same to me. This seems dangerous.." He advised, sounding a little worried.

"Hogwash!" Nora declared. Ever since she learned the word last week, she uses it on a daily basis. She thought it was amusing.

"Don't do it, Nora." Ren put his foot down on this. She was absolutely going to fall off that roof and hurt herself.

"I'm gonna!"

"Then I'm going to tell my mom if you do!" Ren shouted after Nora, who was running straight towards the greenery that was growing around the side of the stone building. His exclamation made Nora pause in her tracks and she turned around, facing him.

"You **stinky** tattle-tale!" She declared, her eyebrows furrowing together as she pointed at him.

"Yeah, I'll tell her Then you won't be allowed to climb anything anymore." The dark-haired boy argued. He crossed his arms and turned away from her. Nora had never heard him speak so loudly.

"You're a momma's boy!" Nora's face turned red from the small amount of anger attempting to sneak through.

"Yeah, well..!..." An angry little Lie Ren started, but he did not continue. He simply shut his mouth, internally frustrated by her stubbornness. Why is she so difficult!?

"WELL, _**WHAT**_ **?**!" Nora shouted at him. In that moment, their argument had ended, for a wild strike of lighting in the distance caught their attention. In fact, quite a few thunder clouds were building up over their proximity. "Stupid normal kids and their _parents_.. Hmph rmp dmfh..tattle-tales..hmph.." Nora grumbled, no longer talking to Ren.

"Children! Get inside, please! This way, this way," Ms. Mei and Mrs. Lie directed to their group. There were 14 kids in their age group and they could sometimes be a hassle. They guided children through the doors of the orphanage.

It does not storm often in Remnant. In fact, many people up in Atlas live their entire lives without seeing a strike of lightning! Thunder and lightning were extremely rare, usually indicators of horrible twisters or disasters to come. The caretakers were not willing to take any chances, and stopped the children in the midst of their outside play.

"What was that.." Nora whimpers, suddenly freaked out. She felt odd inside. She began shaking and fell to the ground on her knees.

"..Are...you okay?" Ren questioned. Their previous argument no longer mattered; they both knew it was rather silly.

Ren was a bit concerned when Nora didn't respond. She was simply staring at the ground holding her torso, still shaking a bit.

"Ms. Mei! Mom... something's wrong with Nora!" Ren shouted, running over to the two adults and pointing at Nora. Today, Ren has raised his voice more than he ever has in his entire lifetime. This gained the attention of the adults instantly.

The moment Ms. Mei looked up and saw Nora on the ground, her back facing her, she ran. "Nora?! Nora honey are you okay!" Miss. Mei kneeled and wrapped her arms around the young red-head.

"I feel sick…" Nora whispers. In fact she isn't too sure what she feels. This is not a stomach-ache or sore body pain. Her torso literally... _tingles_. Tingles? Tickles? What is the right word for it? "I don't know how to call it.."

"Come on honey, let us get you inside. It looks like a storm is suddenly approaching, I don't want us to get caught in it." With that, Miss. Mei scooped up Nora and walked back over to Mrs. Lie and Ren, who were watching them from the main entrance. All of the children were now inside.

Nora and Ren apologized to each other for their silly fight and continued to spend the rest of the day inside together, whether it is playing board games, hide-and-seek, house, puzzles, or even just reading. The storm that had once surrounded the home is now clear, the sky blue as if nothing ever happened. 6pm came around and Nora had to say goodbye to Lie Ren and his mother.

"Thank you again so much for your help, sister. I appreciate it." Miss. Mei bows. Nora smiles and bows at Mrs. Lie as well, with a giggle. She was, very obviously, not birthed into this village's culture. A large majority of the village children had darker, straight hair, and a bit of a darker skin tone. Just like Ren. Nora was rather pale with a very rosy undertone, bright blue-green eyes, and bright orange hair. She was the only child with orange hair in this entire village, let alone orphanage. However, being raised here, it is still a part of her. It makes her feel a part of something, for she has never known anything else. She never had the chance to learn her true culture or family history. She knew absolutely nothing, not even how she ended up in an orphanage.

Later that night, Nora Valkyrie got out of her bed at 11 p.m and tip-toed across the hallways into Ms. Mei's room. Ms. Mei was wide awake, doing paperwork and humming to her own made-up music at the same time. Ms. Mei was very musical and artistic. Beautiful, too. In the morning, she would have the kids sit on the living room carpet in a circle and sing as she would play the guitar. It was their morning song for their morning circle. _It's morning, it's morning…._ Nora lived for this, thus making her a very excitable and happy morning person.

"Miss. Mei?" Nora peeped her head slowly through the bedroom door, only her right eye visible to the adult.

"Nora? Why are you awake? Are you feeling sick again?" Ms. Mei asked. She knew it was Nora instantly, that hair was unmistakable.

Nora slowly walked inside the room, with her hands held behind her back. She stood by the door and just looked at her toes.

"Sweetie?"

"No one wants me…" Nora whispered. Her only other friend had been adopted a few days prior.

"What? Nora! What makes you say such a thing? That's absolutely untrue."

"A happy family found Jia and now she is gone...a nice family found Bolin and he is gone...but families never like me…." Nora stated calmly, still staring at the ground.

"Everything happens for a reason, my love. We are all here for a reason. Perhaps the right family for you hasn't arrived here yet! Maybe they are travelers, wanting to settle in the village. Or perhaps they are a couple who aren't ready for a child right now, but they will be in a week, month, or year from now." Mei tried to explain, but she wasn't sure if she was explaining this properly; she does not often have emotional conversations like this with a 7 year old.

Mei does admit, Nora's case is unlike any other. Her manner of arrival has never happened to any other child in this orphanage.

"I….i have been here longer than anyone else...all of my friends leave me." Nora's eyes begin to tear. "And one day Ren will leave me too, because, you will find a new assistant, and, and, and..and Mrs. Lie won't come anymore, and," Nora was nearly sobbing and hiccuping at this point, her words fighting to be released. Ms. Mei made her way to Nora, picked her up, and sat on her bed with Nora on her lap. She stroked Nora's short hair. Her hair was once extremely long, but there was an incident where a girl took scissors to Nora's hair while she was sleeping. The kids did sometimes tease her for looking different. However, Miss. Mei then treated Nora to an "exciting" haircut the next day, with sweets and pancakes.

"Nora, Ren is my nephew. Even if I do get a new assistant, he is always welcome here. Especially on days where Mrs. Lie has to go to the market while Mr. Lie is at work.. _someone_ needs to babysit him!" Ms. Mei winked at Nora, attempting to make her smile. It partially worked. Then, Nora looked up at the woman with big eyes, passionate but scared and concerned.

"Why am I here, Miss. Mei?" Nora asked. "Did my parents die in battle, like all of the other kids here?"

Ms. Mei sighed. Nora had finally asked the question. She was not surprised, however. On this exact day, 7 years ago, Miss. Mei found Nora.

"Nora, I...I don't know…"

* * *

 **Once again, I encourage any corrections you may have for me! I'm not a writer, but I love learning, so I would really appreciate it :)**

 **Also... the cover art is a picture of Brunnhilde! Nora's mom ;)**


	3. Sacrifice of Sanctity

**7 years ago**

Brunnhilde admires her beautiful daughter, with tears streaming down her face. This was the hardest thing she could ever possibly do. She had just given birth to her two weeks prior, and she knew that it was time. She knew what had to be done. Brunnhilde picked up the newborn and held her close to her body. She inhaled the scent of her child, and kissed the baby.

"My actions on this day will become the greatest regret of my entire life. The only regret that matters. The most painful regret, my daughter…" the sobbing mother shakes her head and looks down at her baby, placing her on a blanket. Her daughter stares up at her with identical eyes; She is _calm_.

"Throughout all of the realms, it is you who will forever hold my heart. My dear, you deserve better than anything I could possibly give you…" The mother inhaled a sharp breath, almost unable to speak. "...a dead mother and a life in exile." Brunnhilde sobbed and held her daughter tight, one last time. She finished wrapping her up in the custom blanket. This blanket, white with pink border, had an emblem patched onto it: A pink warhammer. Though Brunnhilde is doing this behind Thor's back, she still felt as though she owed him this. She is sending her daughter away with a small symbol of him. She deserved to have a piece of her father with her, in a way.

Brunnhilde's symbol was not left out, however. Next to the hammer patch, was a simple patch: a heart. A simple, pink heart with a black border to stand out against the white blanket itself. Brunnhilde gave her love.

Placing her daughter into the thick woven, cozy basket, she also pinned a note onto the inner-border of the basket. Brunnhilde placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead, " **I love you, Nora.** " Shutting the top of the basket, the mother sobbed one last time.

Though the walk was but an hour's journey, it felt as though it had lasted an eternity. She did not want to do this.

Approaching the Bifröst, the woman couldn't help but stare at the ground beneath her. She was simply too ashamed to face Heimdall.

"The day has finally come." He simply stated. Did he expect her?

"I suppose you know." She spoke in a low voice, forcing back tears. She was pretending to be stoical. The air was cold and her body was shaking.

"I suppose Thor does not know."

"He needn't know of this." Once again, Brunnhilde pretended to be cold and emotionless. She wasn't sure if it worked or not. She did this for the protection of her daughter.

"Is it not of his concern? The child you bore, does it not have his blood running through her veins?" Heimdall asked.

"Can you just….Send her away, please?" Brunnhilde could not take any more of his interrogation. Deep down, she knew he was telling the truth.

"Anywhere in particular?"

"Somewhere where no one could find her. No one." Brunnhilde whispered, and gently placed the basket on the ground in between them. She did not realize she was standing directly in front of Heimdall, now.

"The trip, taken alone, may cause harm to her." He said. Despite lacking expression, he did actually care for the lives of everyone… including bastard Asgardian children.

"Staying here will cause her even more harm."

"All right. She shall be on her way." Heimdall spoke while preparing the child's trip. He did not disagree with her. He understood how his king was. Brunnhilde turned away, slowly walking back on the bridge towards Asgard and trying her best not to turn around and run back towards the bifrost just to hold her baby in her arms, one last time. Tears rolled down her face as she heard the newborn begin crying.

Suddenly, it went silent. Brunnhilde squeezed her eyes shut, but continued to walk the bridge. She began to hear footsteps walking towards her. Then, running.

"What..what has happened? I was looking for you, everywhere!" Brunnhilde felt two large, muscular arms wrap around her. "You...you are no longer pregnant.."

"Thor...you knew I was going to do this." Brunnhilde whispered, still squeezing her eyes shut. She didn't want to break down here. Not here, not now. She needed to be alone first. There was a distinct sense of electricity in the air.

"You…" Thor's voice trailed off, and then suddenly he went running. Brunnhilde opened her eyes and turned around, to find Thor running towards the bifrost behind her at the speed of light. "WAIT! HEIMDALL, WAIT!" Thor yelled as he approached the keeper.

"You are much too late." Heimdall spoke once Thor appeared, running around the bifrost, frantic.

"What did she do?! What have you done!? Where did you send my child!" Thor's voice roared.

"I am unable to say." was all Heimdall could respond with.

"This will be the last time: I **demand** you tell me where you sent the child." Thor stated,

Heimdall remained silent. He himself hardly knew what that world was, for he had never sent anyone in that direction in all of his life.

"I see." Thor stated, angrily. He stormed away from the bifrost, lightning and thunder raging in Asgard. Brunnhilde was still standing on the other side, watching him with tears in her eyes.

She saw his rage. She saw his pain. She said nothing.

"You are _**vile.**_ " Thor angrily spat at her, and continued walking away. She did not respond.

She agreed with him.

 **(On Remnant, 1 hour later.)**

"Ms. Mei, I need you to come with me. Something...has.. come up." spoke a soft, concerned voice.. with a hint of confusion. This was the voice of Mrs. Jen, the assistant of the 6-10 age group this year. Mei sighed and stood up, following behind Mrs. Jen.

"What happened? I'm quite busy now."

"Now? It is 2 in the morning. How are you busy, Mei?" Jen asked.

"Maybe you should try helping me with paperwork, sometime….."

"Hush! Do you hear that?" Mrs. Jen exclaimed. The two were now outside in the children's dark and empty play-yard. Why did Jen bring them here?

Seconds later, Mei heard it.

"Is that…" Mei started. Her eyebrows furrowed, trying to listen closer.

"It sounds like-" Jen started, but Mei interrupted her.

"Oh heavens, it's a _baby_!" She shouted. She finally realized that the sound she heard was a baby wailing their lungs out, but she could not see a baby. "Did someone from Wing 1 leave a _baby_ outside?!" The two then decided to walk around the large yard, following the sound. Then, Mei looked up. There was a basket on the tree.

"Grimm's breath..." The two women cursed to each other.

"We **need** to get that baby down! That basket is going to fall!" Mei exclaimed in a panic.

"On it!" Jen shouted, grabbing her weapon. Jen once trained to become a huntress, but dropped out when she realized how much she hated the education system of that time. She preferred to learn by her own terms.

Jen's weapon was much like a rifle axe. She pointed the axe downwards, stood on the base of the blades as if she were on a pogo-stick, and shot the weapon. She obviously enjoyed doing this, she was such a child despite being 56 years of age.

"Be careful!" Mei shouted after her. Mei was quite the opposite; she feared weaponry and knew it was not in her nature at all. She would fall, shoot a friend, drop her weapon, or simply lose a battle against a baby beowolf. She knew her limits, and fighting was not one. Facing foes was difficult for her, because nearly everyone knew how to fight. Deep down, she thinks that this is the reason she does not like to fight: everyone does it. She wanted to bring peace and happiness to the world, instead.

 _Self defense is useful, after all….._

The recoil pressure from the axe shot Jen flying through the air, high enough for her to land on one of the tree's branches. She grasped the tree tightly and slowly climbed towards the basket, which was sitting more towards her left. She reached out and grabbed the handle successfully.

"Yes!" Jen exclaimed, then continued to climb down the tree.

"Oh please let that baby be unharmed.." Mei prayed to herself aloud. Jen reached the ground, and sat by the base of the tree with Mei sitting next to her. In this moment, they felt so much anxiety and energy. They didn't understand why.

As Mei opened the basket, the two gasped. It was indeed a baby. She was wrapped in a white and pink, thick knit blanket. There was a hammer and a heart patch. Atop the baby's head was a fluff of strawberry-blonde. When the baby opened her eyes, they were the brightest blue-green the two women have ever seen. Now, the baby just stared back at them. Calm, quiet. Who was this child?

"Look...There is a note." Jen whispered. They were both still nervous, however, they no longer felt intense amounts of energy. Like the child, they were also relaxed. Mei grabbed the papers pinned to the side of the basket, and the first page read,

"Nora Buðli Valkyrie." It read in a very nice, black ink penmanship. Mei flipped to the second page, which read:

" _Born exactly 14 days from today._

 _Destined for greatness, future wielder of Magnhild and pride of the Valkyries._

 _Her return will change them._

 _They shall love her then,_

 _As I do now._ "

Mei then flipped to the final page:

" _She prefers to be sung to sleep. And if she cries with seemingly no reason at all, mind the weather. It may be dangerous._

 _Also~ her skin is sensitive. Please mind her clothing._ "

She didn't know why, but Mei smiled. She could tell whoever wrote this was a caring parental figure. Most likely her mother, judging by the handwriting, but one could not be too sure. Mei had so many questions.

Why leave the baby at _this_ orphanage? She clearly was not from this village. Perhaps a city family? Why would someone outside the village leave their baby _in_ a village? It is much more dangerous in a village than in the city. Also, why was the baby in a _tree_? At 2am? And, the author of the note cared so much for the baby. Why abandon her haphazardly on a tree? Did this person just climb and leave the baby there?

"Mei. Snap out of it. We need to bring her to the infirmary to make sure she is okay. Perhaps Wing 1 has space to take her in."

"Okay." Mei whispered. She felt the sudden urge to pick up the child and cradle her in her arms. "Oh, honey. You poor child. _Who will you become?_ "

 _ **(Present)**_

Mei stroked Nora's cheek while she fell asleep in her little bed, gripping her blanket for dear life. It was the only connection she had with her parents. Nothing more. Mei never spoke of the note her parent had left. Perhaps when she is older.

Almost all of the orphanage's children were orphans due to death. Whether their parents were murdered by bandits, attacked by grimm, or simply passed from other natural causes.. this was almost always the case. It is not common in their village to simply abandon a child. The village will shun anyone who dares to commit such an act. Mei's jaw tightens in anger just thinking about it, " _Why the_ _ **hell**_ _would anyone abandon a beautiful, innocent soul? A baby. How could someone do this? With what reason?"_ Mei was desperate for a clue. She couldn't understand what situation was so dire that would result in a parent leaving their child in a **tree** , of all things!

A tree that Nora adores to climb.

Nora does not know the story of how she was found. Mei tries not to tell her. All Nora understands is that her parents are possibly alive. However, she fears that this information alone is enough to hurt a child beyond repair. Her hopes are set too high. Some days, the 7 year old still thinks her parents might come back for her.

It is one thing to lose a parent against their will,

It is another to _choose_ to leave a child's life.

Ms. Mei shut off the lamp near Nora's bed, stood up, and left the room occupied by the girls of her group. She made her way to her own room and threw herself in her bed. She was stressed.

She never did understand Nora's note.

 _Wielder of Magnhild? Whats a Magnhild? Her return shall change them? Change who? Us? What will she return to?_

Rubbing her temples, Mei turned over on her bed and called it a night, falling asleep.

 _ **(1 year, 3 months later. November. Nora is eight.)**_

Thor awoke in the middle of the night. He couldn't tell if it was just a bad dream, or if someone was really calling out to him. He had been a bit more alert while asleep ever since his recent battles.

" _THOR."_

With this, Thor knew it simply was not a dream. Someone was calling out to him. How did he only hear it?

With Mjölnir in his hand, he exited his father's palace and roamed around the dark, peaceful streets of the Asgardian bazaar.

" _THOR, COME QUICK!"_

Then, he recognized the voice.

"Heimdall?!" Thor called out, running in the direction of the bifrost.

"Thor, something has occurred! I mustnt let another Asgardian perish."

"Heimdall! What happened?" Thor finally reached the bifrost dome and appeared in front of the gate-keeper. He was expecting an oncoming attack on Asgard, only to be surprised that it wasn't.

"Take a look, Thor." Heimdall said, and gestured toward what looked like a clear ball, and a gold "telescope" next to it.

Peering into the clear ball, Thor saw it.

A young girl, shrieking and sobbing under her bed. Her bed was in a room full of many other beds and children, also hiding beneath their beds. The building she was in was being attacked and overrun by multiple evil creatures of some sort. In fact, these creatures were everywhere- all over the village. Thor watched in the globe as a woman in the very same room as the child was decapitated in front of them. Thor felt his rage. All of those children, dying...

" **Take me there.** " Thor automatically demanded. He had the slightest clue who these people were, or what was happening, but he needed to go. Fast. He needed to defend humanity against this evil.

He didn't have to ask Heimdall twice: Thor was already being sent on his way to this orphanage.

With crashing lightning and loud thunder, he landed on the planet. In fact, he landed _on_ something. On a tree. It was burned now, due to his rage and lightening. Thor stood up and walked around the yard a bit. He heard sirens blaring loudly and stormclouds crashing above him. There was thunder and plenty of lightning circling the home. The strikes threatened to hit the roof of the building. Thor raised an eyebrow. "Did I do this?" He felt calm. He knew it wasn't him.

He entered the wing only to be met with the strange, evil creature: a beowolf. Thor easily slayed the beast with a few simple swings of his hammer. It was hard for something with no soul to fight against a demigod. He marched around the vicinity, searching for survivors amidst all of the death and destruction. Where were the children? The screaming girl? Was he too late?

He made his way up the stairs and entered a room full of beds. This room appeared to be the one in the vision, for there she was: the slain woman on the ground. She was evidently blocking the doorway to stop any evil creatures from entering the room.

The room was dead silent. Few children were slain, but there was a nearly-dead monster lying on the ground, disabled. Who harmed this monster?

"Are there any survivors? I am here to aid." Thor declared. No response. He decided to walk around the room, only the sound of footsteps and stormclouds are audible in this moment.

"Anyone?" Thor asked. He felt his heart begin to sink. He was too late. He was a failure. In anger, he punched the last monster in the room and finished it off. Suddenly, two children with black hair crawled out from under their beds.

"Survivors! Please leave this area for it is extremely dangerous…" Thor began to talk, but stopped when the kids ran away from him before he could even finish his sentence.

Then he heard a sniffle.

"Who is that?" Thor asked, turning around and facing the bed in the corner of the room. He kneeled down and looked under the bed to find a girl with orange hair covering her eyes and squeezing her eyes shut, tears streaming down her face. Thor was both sad but relieved: he found the girl he so distinctly remembered. "Child, are you alright?"

The child did not look up at him. Instead, Thor decided to lift the bed with one hand and place it elsewhere. He thought it would help, but he only looked down to find the small girl crying, holding her torso, and shaking.

"Child?" He tried one last time. He was watching her, not understanding why she is behaving as if….

"I don't feel….." She began, until she opened her eyes and took one look at Ms. Mei.

Then came the wailing. Crying, screaming, wailing. Hiccupping, heaving, gasping. Tears. The storm above them brewed so strong that the entire building shook. She has never cried so hard.

"Child! Control yourself!" Thor shouted. He didn't shout to scare her, but to make sure she heard him. Above all her crying and the storm, it was difficult to be heard. He placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her a little bit. He had a feeling that he knew what would happen if she didn't calm down soon.

"AAHHHHH!" the child screamed, crawling further away from him, shaking. The building shook with her.

"Okay, we **must** leave. This place may collapse." Thor stated and he picked up the little girl, despite all of her kicks, punches, and bites.

"FIX HER! YOU NEED TO FIX HER! THIS CAN'T HAPPEN! I! DON'T! HAVE! ANYONE! ELSE!" She fought him, but he was much bigger and stronger than the small girl. In fact, she looked almost like a toddler compared to him.

"That is impossible." Thor interjected, and dropped her on the grass outside the orphanage. There, she continued to shake and cry, but much less noisy now. "I apologize. I did not mean to handle you, however, it was for your safety."

"..." she sniffles.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"..." she simply stares at the grass beneath her.

"What is your name?" Thor asked the child.

" _Thora Valkyrie!" he heard Brunnhilde giggle._

"Wait, what? Pardon?" Thor shook his head. What did she just say?!

"Nora Valkyrie." She repeated herself with another sniffle.

"I see." is all he could respond with.

He had no clue what Brunnhilde named their child. He doesn't even know whether she birthed a son or daughter. But the sound of this name in a place like _this_ was very suspicious to him. He simply towered over her, watching her sitting on the grass, hugging her body while shaking and crying.

"Hit the ground." Thor ordered, out of the blue. "It may help..."

Without hesitation, Nora punched the grass below her with all of her anger. All of what she just saw and heard: the loud alarms screeching through her ears. The howls of the wild beasts. The sound of the beowolves' claws scratching against her wooden door as Ms. Mei tried to forcefully keep it closed. The claw slicing through her flesh as if it were just butter. The beowolf didn't eat her, nor was it looking for food. It was killing for sport.

The moment the punch hit the ground, the stormclouds crackled and the ground rumbled a little bit. A streetlight nearby crackled and the bulb popped. There was a dent in the ground where her fist met the dirt. Her shaking had finally subsided.

"oh.." She never knew how to stop it before. She looked at her hands in disbelief.

If that wasn't enough of a hint for him, he must really be dense. However, Thor was not dense. He was simply... _careful_. He does not know the people of this world or what their powers behold. Perhaps this is normal amongst their people. He was very familiar with Earth, where the mankind there were not meant to possess any powers. However, humans here may be different.

Unexpectedly, Nora stood up and ran. "MY FRIEND!" She shouted as she ran deeper into the village as fast as she possibly could.

"NORA!" Thor shouted behind her, running after the young girl. She turned left, then right, then left again. She stopped in front of a small home with a green wooden door.

"It is much too dangerous for you to run amongst the village, child!" Thor scolded. He knew that if she went into that house and found her "friend" dead, the village might just be blown to pieces. The storm she is producing is not natural.

"SHUT UP!" Nora said and stomped her way towards the home. Thor was taken aback; Odin would have had his tongue had Thor spoken to him like that when he was younger!

Nora went inside the home while Thor waited outside, his mind thinking uncontrollably. The possibility of this actually being his daughter is slim, however, he was not against the thought completely. She had some…. _.characteristics._

"Ren?! Ren where are you! Ren, please be okay!" Nora screeched, searching the home. She started shouting, her tears forming again and her face feeling hot. She could not lose the only one she could personally call family.

Thor, still standing outside, suddenly feels more electricity in the air. Oh no. He looks up to find that the familiar stormclouds have formed right above them.

"Nora?" Thor questioned, still looking up cautiously at the sky. He began to enter the house and search for her. He heard her screaming again.

"Ren this is not funny! You better not be hiding! Please, please come out! I..i need you.." She cried. This mustn't be easy on the heart of a child.

"Your village is unsafe. I advise against looking for survivors." Thor states. The house rumbles beneath his feet, and his instincts told him that he pissed her off. He was right?

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU DON'T GET IT!" Nora screamed. To her he was this complete stranger who failed to rescue everyone on time. This is a _home_ to her. These village people were her neighbors, friends, family.

"Nora?" a small voice peeped from inside a cabinet. His pink eye was peeking through the slightly-opened door.

"REN!" Nora screamed and ran towards him, hugging and tackling him so hard that they both fell inside the cabinet.

"How did you get here?! Is everyone okay? Where are my parents?…" Ren's frantic voice quivered. He was hoping for good news.

"I don't know, Ren.." Nora said as they both got out of the cabinet. "I'm sorry.." she whimpered. Ren looked away.

Nora pointed out the window, "Look.."

Both Ren and Thor moved toward the window and looked through. A giant Ursa was walking through the destroyed, lifeless village and smashed as much property as possible. This Ursa was looking for more food.

"Ursa...A creature of grimm." Ren stated quietly. Although Nora is fearing for her life, she still does not understand what is going on.

"Stay here, children." Thor declared. "This is nothing." With a cocky grin, Thor gripped his war hammer and marched outside of the small home, heading towards the middle of the street.

"What is he doing? What is that thing? What is this evil world?" Nora questioned, tears brewing in her eyes once again. The two young children move back towards the cabinet and sit inside, hiding in the meantime.

"Don't you know of the Grimm?" Ren asked, shocked. How does one not know about the most threatening creature on all of Remnant?

"no.."

"But everyone knows about grimm. Parents always teach their kids about them." Ren questioned. Since villages are more likely to fall victim to the dark beasts and bandits, village kids even as young as 3 are often exposed to some form of combat or self-defense practice.

"Ren. I've been an orphan since I was two weeks old.." Nora half-whispered. She was quite ashamed to admit it because of how much some older boy in the home used to bully her about it.

Of course, not all of the kids were cruel. Some did not mind and were really nice to her, but they simply did not choose to hang out with Nora the way Ren did. With Nora and Ren, the two were official friends. No one else really did go out of their way to hang out with either of them.

"I didn't know that, Nora. I'm sorry." Ren thought, "But aunt Mei should still have told you.." He was puzzled now.

"She doesn't talk about bad things." Nora said. "Oh…...Miss….Mei…" Nora's memories and flashbacks were attacking her all at once. She squeezed her eyes shut and began to cover her ears, having a panic attack.

Thor approached the Ursa, facing his back. Before the Ursa knew it, Mjölnir was being thrown to the back of his head at 400 miles per hour. This alone should have knocked the monster down, but it did not. When the hammer makes a u-turn to return to Thor's hand, it hit the grimm in the face once again. It did not kill, however. Looking up, storm and lightning clouds began to form. Thor smiled, ecstatic about using this to his advantage. He lifted himself off the ground and channeled the electricity to the beast. On his way back down, he aimed himself toward the Ursa and grinned when he _smashed_ it with the hammer.

Grimm are often attracted to extreme negative emotion. They smell it like a human can smell some delicious bacon and pancakes in the morning. The grimm thrive off of despair, destruction, and death. When Nora began her panic attack about the late Ms. Mei, the Ursa was no longer interested in the confident, excited demi-god in front of him. Running towards Thor, the Ursa licked their mouth as it began to foam.

Thor stood in a defensive stance, expecting the Ursa's charging to hit him. But when Thor looked up, the Ursa had run right passed him. Thor turned around only to see the Ursa make its way towards the door of the small house the children were hiding in.

"SERIOUSLY?" Thor shouted, charging right after that Ursa.

"Shh, shh..Nora, please be quiet, I hear something, please.." Ren whispered to a weeping and shaking Nora. He now had his arms wrapped around her as they hid in the small, dark space.

"I'm scared." Nora whispered. She was shaking again,

"Don't worry...the huntsman will protect us." Ren tried consoling her. He wasn't sure whether it helped or not: If she doesn't know much about grimm, she probably doesn't know much about huntsman. Suddenly, the Ursa slammed its paws against the kitchen counter where Ren and Nora were hiding under, and the two were slightly crushed underneath. The doors broke off and the top of the counter had cracked.

"NORA RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN!" Ren shouted towards her as he dashed out of the open cabinet door on his side, running underneath the Ursa's left paw. Nora followed his exact movements, but from her side.

Suddenly, a hammer was thrown so hard that it smashed through the wall of the house and missed the Ursa, but it landed on the ground next to Ren. Ren looked down at it, and looked up only to see the Ursa preparing to charge at Nora. The Ursa was hungry for her and was determined to feast upon the emotional young girl. Thor ran through the door only to find Lie Ren successfully throwing the hammer at the Ursa to stun it, and running away with the redhead.

"W H A T!" Thor thundered. This regained the Ursa's attention. Ren heard, but he continued to run to catch up with Nora. They went out the back door of the house, stepping over his once beautiful garden and heading straight for a path towards the forest.

Thor, left alone with the Ursa, summoned Mjolnir back to his hand and continued to battle. The Ursa was now weakened, so with one high jump and a heavy slam to the head, it was down. The Ursa vanished, as if it were dust blown by wind.

"What the hell just happened?" Thor's mind was blown. Not only did a dead being's body turn into nothingness, but a random village boy actually wielded his hammer for some time. How was he worthy? "What is this world?"

Thor then walked towards the back of the house and searched the perimeter for a few minutes.

"Hello? Are you children hidden around here? Nora? Young boy?" He was concerned now. The entire village is destroyed, where could they be? How could they thrive, now? It is much too dangerous. They perhaps went to hide back in the orphanage. With that, Thor decided to take the path Nora came from and headed towards her old "home."

"Hello?" Thor questioned as he waltzed into the orphanage, pushing aside the remainder of the broken door. He was finally able to take a look around. Children's' books on shelves on the walls, toy box in the corner. An area for painting and writing. He turned to his left, walked to the next room, and found the wing's dining area. It wasn't too large, it was able to seat a maximum of 20 people. On the walls were drawings: Self-portraits created by the students and their names written below. Some of the kids' other works were also featured next to their self portrait. Thor searched specifically for Nora's, and it didn't take him very long to find: her picture was the only one with hair colored in orange and with pink hearts on her outfit. He looked at her other works: hearts, castles, hammers, and bunnies. A few of the pictures were scribbled over in marker, evident graffiti from another student. "Interesting." From these few pictures of her and the other students, he could tell that she had issues fitting in and relating to her peers.

Thor removed Nora's only clean artwork off the wall, folded it up, and placed it in a pocket underneath his armor. He proceeded to run up the stairs to where he first found Nora. He Encountered an older boy sitting on the stairs, crying.

"Hello child. What is your name?"

"Yatsuhashi." The boy responds. "Are you a huntsman? Did you kill all of the grimm?"

"I don't know. But you should get out of here, try to find somewhere else to go. It is safe for now, but perhaps not for long." Thor responds the best way he can to the 11 year old.

The child nods, stands up, and walks down the stairs. Yatsuhashi aggressively avoids even looking down at the gore all around the orphanage. His only home was broken.. again.

Thor makes it into the girls' bedroom where he originally found Nora, calling out for her or "young boy?" He forgot Ren's name, but he wants to find them both. At this point, he honestly didn't think they were here. He was ready to give up, until he noticed Nora's bed in the corner. Bright white and pink, as if it has never touched a single flaw in all its lifetime. He picked it up and ran his fingers over the two patches. His emblem, and a heart. He knew Brunnhilde did this. He just _knew._ This confirmed exactly what he was thinking.

With that, Thor left this world, taking what he found with him. He wanted to look further for the children, but there was so much of this world he did not understand. They could have gone deeper into the village, towards the large forest, or somewhere he couldn't even imagine. There were questions to be answered. He knows nothing of their kind; the humans could have different powers. That _could_ be why Lie Ren was able to pick up Mjolnir.

* * *

 **I 11000% encourage you to correct me if I make any mistakes, spelling errors, plot errors...okay, just errors in general! Lol. I don't have anyone to read this over with me, and I'm not an actual writer.. sooo I expect to come across some mistakes..**

 **also, if you are very familiar with Thor and notice I messed something up about him/Odin/Asgard/Heimdall/Brunnhilde, please feel free to inform me :) but pls be nice. c:**

 **~Thank you so much for reading~**


	4. Broken and Bereaved

_**(In the Forest)**_

Ren and Nora were running together, panting and occasionally tripping over the terrain.

"Ren…. I ...can't..-" Nora tripped one last time and landed on her knees, giving up. Ren turns around and runs back to her.

"We can't stop now! It's a forest! We must find the nearest village!" He was anxious. He knew the dangers of their environment. Neither of them had weapons, so they were unable to fight.

"...but" Nora began crying. She was confused, slightly giving up, and also in pain. Her head was hit when she was hiding in the cabinet, but that was the least of her problems.

"Come on...please? I'll help you." Ren picked up her arm, pulled it over his shoulders, and helped her walk along the path. They needed to get to the next village before nightfall, and they couldn't give up there...no matter how depressed either of them were feeling.

 _ **(In Asgard)**_

Thor appears in Asgard, a slight disheveled appearance can be seen on him. He looks up only to find Heimdall staring straight ahead with a blank expression on his face. Thor's expression darkened immediately.

" _You._ " Thor's deep voice failed to phase the guardian.

"I."

"You _**knew**_ **..**." Thor continued, taking slow steps towards Heimdall.

"I know many things."

" _Why?_ " He spat.

"Because I choose to observe."

"No, that is not the question. Why didn't you _tell me_ something..a warning!" Thor growled, growing frustrated. He didn't exactly blame Heimdall; he was simply angry and needed to unleash it somehow.

"I did tell you." Heimdall, unfazed as he had been all along.

"You did?"

"I said, I mustn't let another Asgardian perish. Who did you think I was speaking of?"

"... It seems I did not make the connection. I assumed what you were referring to would have been a threat to Asgard." Thor thought a bit. "You should have told me it was my daughter I was going to be saving.."

"Perhaps. However, I didn't. You would not have saved the other four lives, had I told you."

"Of course I would have." Thor responds, sounding quite offended.

"No. You would have found your daughter and taken her back to Asgard. The four mortal boys and girls would have perished."

Thor knew Heimdall was not wrong about this. He spends some time thinking, choosing his next few words wisely.

"Very well. I only have one last question to ask."

"Yes?"

"How did you _know_ she was in trouble?"

"I have kept an eye on her throughout the years."

"Why?"

"..I am unsure." For once, Heimdall had no answer for a question. Thor's face must have changed dramatically, because then Heimdall added, "I knew where she was. The day Brunnhilde brought her to the Bifrost, she told me to send her where no one would know where she is. She failed to realize that it is impossible for _absolutely no one_ to know where she was. **I** knew, because **I** sent her there. I chose to watch her simply because Brunnhilde loved her daughter. Brunnhilde was not only a Valkyrie, but an ally. The child was also your daughter. The grandchild of my king, Odin. I felt an obligation to be sure that the child was not in harm's way. I have never met an Asgardian give up and endure as much pain as Brunnhilde has for the love of a child." Heimdall concluded. Seconds lader, he smirked, "Also..She is now in line to rule Asgard. If something were to happen, I must know the next of kin….."

Thor's eyes were on the ground. He himself had many thoughts running through his mind. He felt guilty for the fate of Brunnhilde. He wanted to ask about her, he wanted to ask about the boy who lifted his hammer, and he wanted to ask about his daughter. He had too many questions.

"Heimdall, is Nora happy on that planet? Aside from the events, has her upbringing been-"

"My apologies, Thor, but you told me your previous question would be your last. I am no longer available to answer questions. Odin has been calling for you, perhaps you should speak with your father instead."

Heimdall always knew. He simply did not wish to answer.

Thor lost his daughter for the second time.

 _ **(Remnant)**_

"Children, I'm sorry... but.. we, unfortunately, do not have the means to provide you shelter at the moment. We do not own refugee housing, let alone an _orphanage._. We send our orphans to the major orphanage in the next village over. They are much more wealthy, I recommend..-" The lady behind the table said, pitying the two dirty children.

"That's where I came from." Nora interrupts the woman, wiping the dirt off of her green uniform shirt to reveal a small patch that said " _Orphanage of Yuan Qi - We are the rescued."_ Yuan Qi was the director of the Orphanage. He was a successful, rich city-man who was raised in that village. Although he now lives in Vale, he spends a lot of his money and donations there.

"Our village was attacked by bandits and grimm, I think…We don't have parents, anymore…. or homes.." Ren said quietly, looking away. His sad expression could break any heart. This poor boy expected to be turned down.

"Alright….. listen," The woman sighed, "I can give you a room in our inn for two days. _Two days_ , you hear me?" She looked at the two little faces. Their bodies perked up and their eyes were happy. Nora was nodding excitedly.

"Please do not cause trouble to the innkeepers. And perhaps," The lady is wagging her finger at them, " _perhaps…..._ they _may_ let you stay a little longer if you help them with business around the inn. Perhaps. You must see with them, first." The lady finishes. She was holding back a smile, watching the two happy children in front of her. They had truly lost hope up until now. She wrote a letter for the innkeeper, added some lien inside the envelope, and handed it to Ren. "Hand this to Shan, she is the innkeeper."

"Thank you so much, oh thank you, you won't regret it!" Nora cried out to the woman.

"Much appreciated." Ren bows, and the two children exit her office.

The duo exit the village official building and reach the Inn. They check in and enter their room. That was when the realization had hit them: the two had nothing but the clothes on their backs and dirt on their body.

"The first thing I need is a bath! Or nap.." Nora said with a sigh as they walk down the small hall, looking for their room.

"It is here." Ren stated, and pointed to the right. He opened the door and they entered their room. They received the smallest possible room the inn could provide: One twin bed, and a small bathroom with a shower. Nothing else, no couch, bathtub, or television. The children did not care. They let the inn give them the most unwanted, smallest room possible in exchange for two extra days.

"How will we sleep?" Nora asked, pointing at the bed. Sure, the two could fit, but she wasn't sure if it was okay to sleep in the same bed.

"I will sleep on the floor, of course." Ren stated, matter-of-factly.

"But why? I don't mind the floor. You take the bed." Nora responded.

"I insist. Take the bed. You are hurt. I'm okay."

"I am?" Nora responds. She doesn't feel anything?

"Yes, your head was bleeding earlier but it has stopped by now."

"Oh." Nora responds, rubbing her head. She felt some dry blood under her hair. It wasn't too much, but she could feel it there. Her head did feel sore. "Alright then...Thank you, Ren. You're a true friend…" Nora responds quietly, smiling.

"Thank you. As are you, Nora." Ren sends her a small smile.

"So, umm..Who's gonna shower first? You probably should, since you're letting me sleep on the bed tonight. You deserve it more.." Nora suggested. This was strange for the both of them. Nora was used to a schedule; order. The orphanage gave everyone scheduled times for everything. She was suddenly on her own.

"Okay. I should be finished soon." Ren said and then headed to the bathroom.

"Okay." Nora whispered, and sat on the bed. She let out a small sniffle, a few stray tears running down her cheeks. _Why is this happening to me?_

Ren enters the bathroom and sighs. He starts the water and enters the small shower. It is cold. He doesn't care. Despite his tears, he doesn't care that the water is cold or that the room is small or that he has to sleep on the floor. All he cares about, at the moment, is exactly what had happened to him. He begins crying because he lost everything. His mother. They were everything to each other, and she's just gone now. _Is this your plan, creator? Has this been your plan all along? Is this what you want? ..blood? Death?_ Ren thinks to no one in particular. Whichever deity is listening, he hopes they show him and his friend some mercy. If he thought about all of the pain he was currently feeling, he would break. Physically and mentally. Instead, he quietly cried. He was only nine. He isolated his emotions more and more. He needed to be strong to survive. He needed to be strong for Nora. No one wants a crybaby in their life, and he knows damn well that he can't get through this hardship on his own. He had no one but his friend. This is how emotional suppression begins.

Nora casually hopped off the the bed and started pretending that her problems did not exist. Removing the blankets and pillow from the bed, she sets it on the ground for her friend. When Ren comes out of the shower and walks into the room, his medium-length hair wet and no longer in a ponytail, he smiles at Nora. Sure, he was still wearing his dirty clothes, but at least he was clean.

"It's all your- What are you doing, Nora?" Ren asked once he saw the empty bed, all of its contents placed neatly on the ground.

"I am setting up the floor for you to sleep on. If I'm getting the bed, then I am going to give you the blanket and pillow. It is only fair. Don't fight me on this." Nora declared, pointing her thumb at her chest. The small girl will not take no for an answer.

"Hmm. Alright.. Thank you, Nora." Ren said awkwardly. He doesn't know why, but he suddenly felt bashful. Although he felt completely low, someone was still doing something nice for him. _Caring._ The feeling must have been contagious because a light blush came to Nora's cheeks right before darted for the bathroom.

"Okay, well..see ya!" The younger girl said and shut the door. Ren smiled and sat on the makeshift bed Nora made for him. He was still hurting that he lost his parents. His family..his home. But, to look on a brighter side: he saved Nora with that huntsman's weapon. She would not be alive if he hadn't done that. Ren was quite proud of that moment. Ever since then, Ren was inspired.

"I will become a huntsman."

* * *

 **Sorry about this one being a tad shorter than the previous ones! It was the only spot in the story that seemed appropriate to cut it off haha. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Next one should come up quick :)**

 **I wasn't sure if I expressed the sadness in the two enough...they literally just lost everything, can you imagine how awful they must feel? Then again, I didn't want it to become tooooo dark...I tried not to go overboard.**

 **Let me know whatcha think! :D Also: did you guys watch the new rwby episode?! Ren mentioned his _parents!_ *gasp***


	5. Dynamic Discovery

Ren and Nora spent the rest of their 4 original days at the inn, and also managed to stay an extra week since the inn had work for them. Ren worked in the kitchen while Nora cleaned the rooms after the guests left. It didn't really pay them much at all, since a majority of their Lien is going towards their last few days at the inn.

After all 11 days were up, however, Ren and Nora no longer had business with the inn. They needed to leave. As much as the staff loved having them around and caring for the kids, the inn itself could not afford to pay for them. Business for this village was rather rough.

"Hey Nora, have you seen my left- Uh?" Ren asks, while walking out of the bathroom with only his right shoe in hand. When he entered the room, he saw Nora sitting on the bed, still and silent. Yet tears were running down her face as she stared down at her hands. He wasn't sure how to handle it. He was never used to seeing anyone being emotional; let alone Nora. She was always the happy, bubbly, smiley one. Nora was the happiness, not.. this. However, he doesn't blame her for feeling the sadness, too. They both had the same heavy feeling in their hearts. "Are you okay? Why are you crying, Nora?" Ren asks, moving toward the bed and sitting next to her. This caused her to let out an audible sob. Her small sobs made Ren's eyes threaten to leak. Of course, he held them back, as he did for the past several days. Ren's thoughts repeated to himself: _I have to be strong. I have to be strong. I absolutely have to._

"Ren, where will we go? The Inn is done with us and we still don't have any money to do _anything_. We're gonna get kicked out with nowhere to go and no food or friends or family," Nora begins to ramble _and_ sob, almost sounding gibberish. He didn't understand what she was saying through her crying, but he patiently let her finish anyway. He sat on the bed next to her with an awkward space between them. He felt like awkwardly patting her shoulder saying, "there, there…" but he didn't. Instead, he simply stared at his feet which were hanging off the side of the bed. It wasn't until she spoke her last sentence where he actually understood some of her messy language, "- I wish I had parents… "

"Me too, Nora." Ren quietly responded, never tearing his eyes away from his feet. He never thought he would be agreeing to such a statement, and it hurt him. Why did his mom have to go out like that? Why did she have to try to save the whole village? If she had just thought about being with Ren for those 5 damn minutes…..

"It hurts to have never even had one...not a single family member….just left out here in the dark, all alone.. _knowing_ you're unwanted..." Nora whispered.

"It hurts to lose one you've loved and relied on your whole life." Ren shares. Neither of them meant to make it sound like a competition for who is most broken, rather, they both felt a sense of understanding. Nora didn't realize how painful it must be for a _normal_ kid to become parentless. Sure, she's broken because she was abandoned and teased all her life...and had to watch Miss. Mei die...but she can't imagine how painful it must be to actually have parents who love and care for you, only for them to be murdered. The closest person she had as a parent was Ms. Mei, and it was just her job. Although Nora did love her, she had trust issues when it came to adults. She shuddered at the flashbacks from the orphanage and decided to change the subject, much to Ren's relief. They were not so comfortable discussing such emotions with each other.

"I need to get out of this uniform. It's driving me nuts. It went from something I wore every day to something I absolutely hate seeing. I don't know. I need something else." Nora declared while hopping out of bed. She didn't want to remain on the topic of parents for too long because she didn't want to upset Ren too much, either.

"Well, the inn gave us both white shirts for whenever we worked for them. Just use that for now, I guess." Ren suggested, following her and motioning towards their small pile of work items. The inn had given them both white inn shirts and green backpacks with the inn's logo.

"I guess you're right, Ren. I'll just...wear this white shirt instead. But…. it's too…..." Nora now had the shirt flat on the bed, the duo looking over it. She hummed and placed her hand on her chin, thinking. (And mostly imitating Ren.)

"So?" Ren shrugged. It's just a shirt.

"Pffft…." Nora grabbed scissors and laughed maniacally, resembling her old self. Ren smiles despite her concerning look of pure evil. Her uniform exhausted her and something plain just wasn't enough anymore. Growing up with schedules, orders, and a uniform life was all she was ever used to. She was fine with it before. But, now? She needed to rebel, somehow. It was like a burning urge in her brain ready to explode; she did not want to be reminded of her past life any longer. Those were the _good_ days. They mustn't be tainted. Her memories of wearing that uniform had to remain ... _good_ -ish. Not sad and broken, like she was now.

Nora grabs the shirt and cuts out a heart shape on a random spot on the shirt. Surprisingly, it looked better than expected. "I've always wanted my things decorated in h-"

 _Pause._

Ren waits a second, but then responds when Nora's words come to a sudden halt. " ... ? ... Nora..?.." She's staring at her shirt, scissors sill equipped in hand. She looks as still as a statue, just staring at the shirt with a heart cut into it. It's a bit strange and unfamiliar for Nora; not a single fragment of emotion can be shown on her blank face. Ren's eyes squint out the window as he heard a storm brewing in the distance.

Ren has acknowledged the fact that random, harmless storms have been appearing lately, but he has yet to make the connection. Perhaps it was just strange coincidence. "Hellooo? Remnant to Nora? Are you with us? On Anima?" The boy waved his hand in front of her face. It wasn't until a light flickered on and then off again where she snapped out of it. She was literally turning gray.

"I just realized…..I..forgot something…" Nora finally speaks, slowly.

"What have you forgotten?"

"Umm...it's just a blanket... Nothing, now. Our village is nothing.. Let's just go.." Nora attempted to brush it off.

"Nora? You sure you're okay? It was only a blanket..Maybe we can take the one we have here with us instead." Ren didn't understand. A bit of lightning hit the mountains, miles away.

"No… That blanket.. It was the only thing I had of my parents, Ren! I don't know what it meant but there was a heart on it..and a hammer on it. It was so soft and amazing and smelled so nice, I've never seen anything that could compare to such an amazing blanket..and...and it's gone! The pink, the heart, the soft…" A small sob escaped, but no real tears followed along. She took a deep breath and continued, "It's all _ruined_...stolen by those evil grimm creature things…..another thing stolen from me…" Nora looked down at her feet while she sat on the bed again. Ren waited patiently, knowing she wasn't done yet.

"I've always wanted hearts on everything because of it, ya know? It reminds me that they _probably_ loved me, once.. before they abandoned me...maybe. Maybe if they see something of mine, with a heart and stuff..they can see it and….and…" Nora's voice softens to the point where it was nearly inaudible. "Maybe they will..find me...they will see all the hearts and _save me_. Maybe I'm just lost. That's a possibility, right? I was just a lost baby and the orphanage found me before my parents did…. Maybe they can find us both and take care of us together. They've gotta be out there somewhere, right?" The young girl yearned, looking up at her older friend. Her mind often created wild stories behind the patches on her blanket, but sadly, she never knew the truth. Ren looked at her with sad, sympathetic eyes when she asked him these questions. He didn't respond or even move when those words escaped her lips. He knew her parents were probably not looking for Nora. After his silence, Nora finished off her tangent. "So.. no, it's not just a blanket.. It's my mom and dad… And… all I have .. the only thing that was _mine_ and not just something I had to share with 20 other kids from the orphanage.." She paused, and then sighed. Ren took this as a cue.

"I'm sorry, Nora.. Maybe one day in the future we may head back to that village and scope it out. For now, it is too dangerous." Ren tried to console her, gently rubbing her shoulder.

"Yeah, you're right.." Nora whispers. She grabs her shirt and casually changes right there. Neither of them actually cared- they are both young kids, too young to understand why grown ups want to separate boys and girls all the time. Nora always knew the "difference," she would often help the caretakers change babies diapers back in the orphanage. She just doesn't see why it's a big deal? She actually thinks " _boy thingies!"_ are cooler! Ms. Mei used to laugh whenever Nora would say such things. Oh, how she missed Ms. Mei….

"Nora. Wanna go to the city?" Ren said spontaneously, breaking her train of thought.

"What? We don't have that kind of lien." Nora's eyes looked like they were going to fall out of her head. Ren was not the kind of person to come up with such random plans, but whenever he did, it usually was with reason.

"Let's find a way. So far I have 20 Lien! Plus, the city is more protected. We are still in danger, being here. Especially since this village is even **smaller** than the one you and I are from….maybe we can find a refugee shelter in Mistral. Or an orphanage." Ren began. Nora turned white and started shaking her head.

"No no no, no..not another orphanage.. please, Ren!" Nora cried dramatically, wrapping her arms around the tall boy like a sloth, placing all of her weight on him. "The parents are going to adopt you _soooooo fast_ and then they're gonna ignore me! They always do that! And then I will be alone! Then the kids will laugh at me so much, and pull my hair! That always happens!" Nora says all this in a frantic 'i'm-jokingly-being-over dramatic' voice.

With this, Ren was quick to learn the quirk: she's not _actually_ kidding around, even if she tried to make it out to be a joke. She was insecure, had anxiety, and she wasn't exactly wrong, either. She was often overlooked in the previous orphanage. Whenever she made a new friend, they were gone and adopted months later. Kids don't often last 9 **full** years in that orphanage like she did.

"Nora, you don't get it? This is different." Ren began, holding her wrists and gently sliding her arms away from him. She slumped down and sat on the floor while he remained standing and holding her wrists. "It's a city, not village. People from _all over_ Remnant go to cities. Everyone is different in cities! Different cultures, personalities, appearances, races.." Ren explained, trying to cheer her up. He used her arms to express the emotions behind his words. Though he was not one to gesticulate so much, he felt that using her arms to do so might make her smile. It worked. "You'll be adopted in no time!"

"But….wh….what if two different families adopt us and we live super far away...and never see each other again?" Nora raised the question, big blue-green eyes looking up at him. His pink eyes looked down at her to find the genuine concern in her eyes. He had to admit, this question temporarily stunned him. He never thought of them being that far apart before. Even before the tragedy, the two were always together whenever his mom volunteered at the orphanage. _What if it really does happen?_

He furrowed his eyebrows and there was a pause before he answered her. "Well.." he hummed. "Maybe we can make sure we get adopted together?"

"Or not go at all.." Nora implied. She knew Ren was only thinking about their well-being, but she was feeling terrified. She didn't want to go through that again; the order, the control, the schedules, the new people and the teasing, the excitement of hopeful parents walking in only to disappoint her when they walk away. Friends leaving. What if one of the adults in this orphanageis nasty? What if she gets adopted by a horrible family? Ren couldn't protect her forever. She was clinging to the last thing she could call home...quite literally. She didn't realize she was clinging to his leg until he tried to walk and shake her off.

"Well, Nora. What ever we shall do...we are in it together, yes?" Ren asks, looking down at his friend. He showed her his hand, waiting patiently for her to accept it. She looks back up at him with wide eyes, again.

" _Oh-kayy_... I mean.. **yes**!" Nora responded, feigning confidence. She accepted his hand and he helped her up. She decided that even though she doesn't exactly _feel_ confident, that doesn't mean she can't pretend to be it. Perhaps, if she pretends to have these good emotions, they will one day become true?

"...Can I show you something cool?" Nora asks, grabbing the metal scissors with a small smile Ren surely didn't recognize.

"Um...sure?" He didn't think much of it. "Wait, you won't cut either of us, right?" Ren speculated. His eyebrow went up and a small smile formed on his face.

"Oh of course not, you goober! Just watch!" Nora giggled and walked towards an outlet. When she was going to reach for it, Ren ran to her and pushed her away.

"NORA! What-Are you-How- You're insane!" a very alarmed Ren shouted. He stood in front of the outlet to make sure she won't attempt anything.

"NO! Its cool, just watch!" Nora, who was on the floor once again, argued. She had absolutely no idea why he reacted the way he did.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! I get it, we are hurt, but I refuse to watch you do that to yourself! You will die, do you know that?!" Ren fought, still blocking the outlet.

"Wait! I! ..Huh?! But...I..I've done this before! It didn't kill me?!" Nora fought, only to watch Ren cross his arms and shake his head, still refusing. "Really, it's so cool! I've wanted to show you! Don't you trust me?"

Ren looked down at her. They were only 8 months apart in age, but she was so much shorter than him. It is actually most common for girls to grow faster and taller than boys at first, but this was obviously not the case. Perhaps he grew _too_ fast, or she grew _too_ slow...either way, Ren secretly enjoyed towering over the small girl. He could mess with her by holding something over her head so she can't reach it. In this case, it was the metal scissors.

When Ren didn't answer her her question, she simply crossed her arms and huffed. "I wanted to show you something _so_ cool and you ruined it. I am _so_ mad at you right now!" The girl dramatically turned away. Ren didn't understand what was going through her mind: to put a metal scissor into an electrical outlet will absolutely shock you to death. What is wrong with her and why does she want to do that? How has she done it before? Why does she insist so much on doing this?

"Nora. Are you sure about this?" Ren sighed, slowly giving up. When she nodded her head excitedly, Ren pointed his finger at her. "Do you _promise_ you'll be okay? I can't lose you, Nora. Do you understand this?" He was serious. The girl stood still and kept nodding her head.

"I swear, Ren! I've done this before. I don't know how it happens but it's really cool and I just want to show you what I can do…"

He didn't understand it, but he knew how to _somewhat_ use his aura. He handed her the scissors with a sigh. Standing vigilantly near the outlet, he watched closely. He was prepared to help her if something went wrong.

"Yess!" Nora exclaimed in a whisper to herself. She bent down and stuck the metal blades into the electrical outlet. Where any normal human would get shocked and go unconscious, ( and possibly burn or have a heart attack), Nora instead grew a menacing smile, pupils dilating. She was shaking, but not the same kind of shaking she does when she gets has a panic attack. Electricity can be heard, but not from the outlet. When she pulled out the scissors, she was able to create some of her own sparks using the scissors.

"What are you doing? How do you-" Ren began, completely confused and dumbfounded. He backed away a little bit. Just then, a suddenly very _energetic_ Nora lifted Lie Ren and _threw_ him on the bed. "What the?! Nora! You-WhOA!?" Ren exclaimed.

"Isn't this so cool?!" Nora shouted. After lifting Ren and putting him on the bed, she proceeded to lift the bed itself…. With Ren _still on it_. "Woooo!" Nora giggled and jumped a bit.

"Put….Me… down.. .PLEASE!" Ren shouted. Nora dropped the bed on the ground with a _thud_ and began fanning herself.

"Whew! Is it hot in here? Its extremely hot!"

This was absolutely insane to him: she was just an 8 year old child!

" **How** are you doing this? I'm so confused," Ren asked as he watched Nora rub her two index fingers together, electricity forming in between. She was smiling like a mad scientist. "Are you actually an android? A robot?"

"Huh? No! I'm still a squishy human. Oh! Watch this, too!" Nora said, voice obviously hyper. She skipped over to a lamp and tapped it with the scissors. It lit up. "Isn't this amazing?!" Nora said, almost _too_ excited. She threw her arms in the air and suddenly a strike of pink electricity ran from her hand to the scissors and then towards the window where the scissors were pointing. The small girl froze, her eyes opening wide at the sound of glass shattering across the room. "Oops.." Nora whispers and she lowered her arms, staring at her hands.

"Nora…..I need you to put the scissors down…." Ren stated cautiously, staring at the broken glass on the floor. Nora gently placed the scissors on a wooden bedside table and backed away from it. She now stood near the door.

"I...actually did not know about _that_ … I mean, I didn't know I could… Uh.." She hesitated. "Ummm Ren….maybe we should be leaving now?" Nora asked. She didn't expect an actual strike of electricity to zap from her. She was a little bit scared of herself, wondering what kind of monster she is.

"Nora, I think that you discovered your semblance. It's quite insane and surprisingly powerful...but that is the only explanation I have for you." Ren reasoned with her, still not going near her. They both understood; She had this power in her and neither of them knew about it. She couldn't control it, so what if she accidentally shocked him?

Quite frankly, Nora was a bit surprised. She expected him to say, " _You broke the window?! You freak, who does that?! You're so crazy. You can't be human… get away from me before you kill me!"_

"Wh-what's a semblance?" Nora asked. Ren wasn't surprised she didn't know. He simply sighed and grabbed their belongings. He did end up packing the blanket anyway. Walking over to her, he opened the room door and held it open for her. The two walked out quietly.

"I'll tell you on the way." He responds, shutting the door behind him. Ren and Nora escaped the inn, and the village, before they ever had the chance to be reprimanded for the broken window. It was then that Ren realized how Nora will forever put the two in trouble. She didn't mean it; she was an accidental trouble-maker. He accepted the fate and continued walking with her along a path away from the village. Though he felt guilty for the behavior and not informing the inn of they did, he knew that he wouldn't be able to pay for that window at all. He pushed away the feelings of guilt.

Suddenly, Ren felt a shock on the back of his arm. "Ow!" He says, more bothered than anything. No one likes to be shocked. He turned around to find Nora covering her mouth with both of her hands in surprise.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you I swear! Please don't be mad at me I really didn't mean anything, i was just… well i decided to poke you to see if it would do anything and I didn't really expect to shock you, I thought it would be safe to touch you but I wasn't sure so I was testing it out by poking you but th-"

"It's okay, Nora." Ren interrupts. He was used to her ramblings by now, she has done it ever since they met. Rambling was a typical Nora social trait; a bit nervous and awkward at times, but she still loves to talk to people. She liked people. Ren was different: Though naturally quiet, he wasn't actually awkward. His words were almost always well-thought and timely. He even liked people, too…

* * *

 **Aaand that's ittttt for noww...**

 **If you are knowledgeable about Thor or have any helpful tips, please feel free to PM me, because I admittedly _don't_ know as much about the Thor universe as I would like. This fic is definitely mostly RWBY rather than Thor, but that doesn't mean I should be writing out of my butt about him! Lol. Everything I've written so far are things I have learned from web-search and few things I have made up.**

 **Of course, grammar and story critiques are always welcome as well (I'm not a great writer or story teller, im sorry! I'm more of the idea-person)**

 **Thank you for reading! ~**


	6. Red Rescue

**(About 4 hours had gone by)**

Their travel was surprisingly silent as the two walked through a pathway in the forest. They were planning to _at least_ make it to another major village, where they may be able to pay for a ride to Mistral.

"Nora?" Ren proposed a conversation after a few minutes of silence. He knew she was feeling concerned and, most likely, insecure about herself and new found 'semblance.'

"Yes, Ren?"

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Ren asks, thinking about the past few days' events. He made his decision, but he was curious about hers.

"A teacher!" Nora declared proudly. Ren snorted a little. Not that it was funny, but rather ..unexpected.

"Really? Why?"

"Well...I don't know. It just speaks to me!" Nora smiled. "Passing knowledge. Helping others…What about you?"

"A huntsman. To fight off grimm and protect villages. Like… like ours." Ren responded.

"What?!" Nora exclaimed, "But that's dangerous, and you could get killed by monsters! Hogwash!"

"Nora do you remember the definition of that word?" The older boy teased.

"Yes, it means 'nonsense', duh!" She responded.

"I stand corrected." Ren smiled. "So..what made you wake up one day and say 'I want to teach'?"

"What made _you_ wanna be a huntsman?" Nora avoided Ren's question. Though she didn't really need to, for he wasn't actually going to force her to expand on it. He never wanted to force anyone to talk.

"I saw how the huntsman saved us and I thought he was really awesome." Ren shrugged, he was only _half_ lying. A small blush appeared on his cheeks, but Nora didn't notice it. Ren really wanted to be a huntsman because of the feeling he got when he picked up that weapon. He felt sudden confidence and strength that he had never possessed before. He felt power, and when he hit that grimm to save Nora, he was proud. Adrenaline. He wanted to experience it again. He wanted to save people.

"Hmm, you're right." Nora agreed. "He _was_ kinda cool. But he looked really weird, didn't he?"

"What do you mean he looked weird?"

"I don't know. Like he wasn't from Anima or something.." Nora trailed off.

"Nora," Ren sighed, "You know… not everyone has dark hair or tan skin, like me and the other village people you see. It is not so strange that this man had blonde hair and light eyes. Remnant is occupied by _many_ different people. I mean, _you_ have orange hair and light skin. That doesn't mean you aren't from Anima. Watch.. in cities, such as Mistral, you will see people with green, blue, red, yellow hair. If you go to Atlas, the majority of the population have light skin, eyes, and hair. In Menagerie, there are Faunus."

"Well, I know _that_. I mean….I.. that's not what I **meant**." Nora blushed, feeling embarrassed. "What I mean ...he was like...it was the other things... like, not just his look but ... how he _acted_? Or..well, like how he talked... _spoke.._.I think?...I mean, he was all…. I don't know….gah .. " Nora rambled while Ren listened patiently. When she trailed off trying to figure out what she really meant, Ren spoke.

"You have a hard time saying what goes through your head, don't you?" Ren asked.

"Heh...yeah..it's like...my mouth can't translate, sometimes.." Nora sheepishly scratched the back of her head.

"You should try pausing, and thinking about the words in your mind ahead of time. For example, I imagine the sentences in my head, like a book. I speak, reading off my words as if it were a script. Maybe this can help you?" he offered.

"I don't know, Ren...you're pretty smart..I mean I'm not dumb or anything but that won't work for me, I think.." Nora blushed.

"Well why not? Always worth a try." Ren asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm just not good with that kind of thing...letters and stuff...I never learned it very well. I mean, I learned it and know it but I still mess up, a lot.. when I try to read, it all just gets mixed up sometimes and I get confused. I can't even imagine how messy my mind would get if I thought about a book and words and letters! Oh, it hurts just thinking about it!" Nora explained while hiding her face behind her hands, still visibly embarrassed. She doesn't want Ren to think she was a stupid baby who didn't understand how to read common Reminish (the common language of Remnant).

"Oh... hmm." Ren sounded like he was thinking. He doesn't understand her situation, but figured that helping her may be the key. "Well, if we ever get the chance, maybe we could read together. Perhaps you just need practice?" Ren questioned. He didn't blame her, free education was not provided in their village. Only families with Lien were able to send their kids to the village school. Ren was lucky to have attended, but none of the orphanage kids went for they had no one to pay for them. Some days, however, the orphanage would raise enough donation money to have a math or language teacher show up and teach their students for a week. Those were Nora's favorite kind of days.

The students of the orphanage weren't entirely left for the dust, either. They were provided with many educational toys and the caretakers often taught the children what they knew. The largest area of the building was filled with books, where the caretakers often read to the children.

"Miss. Mei used to do that with me... She knew I struggled with it, too, but.." Nora shrugged. "There were just so many of us. She wasn't a _real_ teacher, just a caretaker..and it was hard to control all of us and stuff..But she still….she.."

"I miss her, too." Ren stated, almost as if he read her mind. Mei _was_ his aunt, after all.

"I just want to get to the city already...this travel is pure hogwash! I'm tired!" Nora exclaimed. Ren let out a smile and nodded in agreement. They searched for a safe spot to rest for a few minutes and together they leaned against a tree.

As they sat down, Nora grabbed her backpack and pulled something out.

"Can you read this to me?" Nora smiled, handing the book to Ren.

"Where did you get this?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Umm…" Ren's face was met with orange hair as Nora turned to face in the opposite direction. She was ashamed.

"Did you steal this?" He asked, a bit surprised. He didn't even notice her do this.

"It was just … well..yeah...the inn….they had a lot of nice books and I originally got it to cheer you up because you like books but then I thought, hey!, maybe you could read it or you could read it to me or maybe we could read it together since I need practice and stuff idontknow..." Nora rambled.

"Cheer me up? But I'm fine?" Ren asked, rather surprised.

"You know, for someone who is so quiet, you actually talk way more in your sleep than you do awake." Nora giggled. Ren's face turned pink with embarrassment. "It's okay, it doesn't bother me, Ren. But in your sleep I heard you...it sounded like you were talking to your mom….saying you wanted to go with her.." Nora spoke softly, Ren's eyes shooting down at the book in his hands. He remembered that dream. It was the night of the attack; in his dream he insisted on going with his mom to help her. He played with the edge of his shirt while Nora continued, "I wasn't sure if I should have said anything, so I didn't...instead, I wanted to make you smile…" Nora looked down, also feeling slight embarrassment. To her surprise, Ren did not stay silent or get mad. He just cracked open the old book.

"Once upon a time... there lived in a certain village a little country girl, the prettiest creature who was ever seen.." Ren began to read the book. Nora perked up and scooted closer to him, trying to peer over his arm at the words he read. "Her mother was excessively fond of her; and her grandmother doted on her still more. This good woman had a little red riding hood made for her. It suited the girl so extremely well that everybody called her Little Red Riding Hood." Ren continued.

Nora smiled, and was happy for the first time in a very, _very_ long time.

"Do you want to read the next part?" Ren asked.

"Umm...I guess I can try.." Nora said nervously, blushing. She peered down at the words. The letters looked messy to her, morphing together or disbanding, all over the page. They didn't make sense."Um...It says...um...D-Due?..no, wait, wait..." She squinted, struggling to make out the words. In this moment, she cursed herself for not listening to the few times Ms. Mei attempted to teach her how to read, or for not picking up a book more often. She never realized she would feel this insecure about reading before.

"It says 'One'..That first letter is an O." Ren helped, pointing at the word. She struggled way beyond what he expected. "What about this letter?" Ren asked, pointing to a random H on the page.

"That's an….." Nora paused, bringing her face closer to the page. Ren waited patiently. _Perhaps she needs glasses?_ He could sense her frustration, until suddenly, "Oh! That's an H!"

"Perfect." Ren smiled at her. "Do you want to try it again?"

"Okay..." Nora continued to read, "One...one day?" Nora looked up at Ren for approval and he nodded his head with a smile. "Umm..One day…... the little red riding hood-"

"Wait," He interrupted. "That's not what it says.. Why are you making that part up, Nora?" Ren interrupted.

"I...I don't want to look stupid in front of you.." Nora looks away, her face warm with embarrassment for the millionth time that day. "Maybe... y- _you_ could just read, instead? I'll just listen.."

"It's okay, Nora..I'll help you. I don't make fun of people." Ren looked at Nora with sincerity.

"I know...that's why you're my friend." Nora smiled back at him.

 _ **(An hour later, just before reaching the major village)**_

"Ahhh! Fi-nuhh-LLLYY!" Nora exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air. The two were walking down a path in the forest, Nora skipping a few feet ahead of Ren. They were able to see a structure in the distance: an obvious sign of the village they are approaching, Kuroyuri. They still had some time to go, but seeing the village walls from afar gave them hope. The two walked until Ren slowed down; he heard something. Nora continued skipping ahead of him, assuming he would eventually catch up.

"Nora, wait. I hear something." Ren said. Unfortunately, he was not loud enough and she was already about 20 feet ahead of him. "NORA!" He called out to gain her attention. The noise he heard was familiar, and he knew where it was headed. He watched as she stopped to turn around and face him, while a young grimm (Creep, specifically) lunged at the small girl and swiped at her chest with its tail. After the dreaded whipping and then _crack_ sound from the interaction, the girl flew backwards and stared up at the sky for a moment. Her chest felt like it was on fire; that it was going to collapse within her. In fact, it felt like she got the wind knocked out of her…..as if she _couldn't breathe.._ She felt completely numb and squeezed her eyes shut to fend off the pain. It did not help one bit.

Ren had already been sprinting towards her and the grimm, using everything in his power to get to her in time. He lunged towards Nora and landed on top of her to block her from the grimm. While hiding his head against her shoulder, he braced himself for an attack he could not see behind him. Though he felt the tail of the creep hit his back, it was not quite what he expected. In fact, it almost felt as if someone pulled the creep _away_ from the children just as it had barely touched Ren.

The older boy felt the small sting on his back, but it did not hurt him nearly as much as it hurt him to watch the girl beneath him struggle and choke on her oxygen and some blood seep through her white shirt. It was perhaps just that: a large cut. What would hurt the girl the most was probably her failure to compose herself. The impact of the whip-like tail against her chest rendered her breathless, and her panic would only make it worse."Nora... Nora, breath. Slowly! You'll be okay... just breath... Nora?" Ren struggled to help, having absolutely no idea what to do to comfort her. He held her face while the sound of a dead grimm evaporating could be heard behind him. She looked as though she were trying to say something to Ren, but continued to choke on her words.

"You two should not be travelling alone in the forest." A calm, female voice spoke. Ren turned around and looked up at the woman. She seemed to be in her late 20's or early 30's, and was clad in what looked like black and red themed village attire.

"Are you a huntress? Please, my friend, she's badly hurt, I-" Ren scrambled.

"Yes I know, I saw what happened," She interrupted, "Come, there is an infirmary in this village." The woman said and picked up Nora. The three began to speed-walk towards the village. The orange haired child was still struggling to catch her breath, but the burning on her chest and red on her shirt made her shake even more with fear and anxiety. Flashbacks of the grimm attacking and killing those in her orphanage flooded her brain and tears rolled down her cheeks. Ren followed after the taller huntress and kept looking over at Nora, his own anxiety overcoming him.

 _ **(later)**_

"Thank you for saving us.." Ren said while the woman placed Nora in the infirmary bed. He looked at the unconscious girl with sad and concerned eyes.

She will be okay.

"Don't expect it again." The huntress responded. Ren shot his eyes up at the dark haired woman and furrowed his eyebrows.

"But... you are a huntress…"

"No, kid. I'm not."

"Then why _did_ you save us? And why wouldn't you do it again?"

"That is my rule."

* * *

 **Gee...I can only _guess_ who that may beeee...**

 **Anyway, this is the part where my story's main focus goes to Ren and Nora and who they are/why they are the way they are. (I told ya my story was like 88% Rwby! lol..hope you don't mind...)**

 **~Thank you sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!~**


	7. Remorseful Rogue

~ **Just letting you know, the beginning of this chapter is like... a flashback, I guess? It flashes back to about a week** _ **after**_ **the forest-grimm incident- when Nora is mostly healed and the two have been kind of hanging out with the woman ever since.**

* * *

" _I can teach you two how to fight. I have a...tribe. We can help you guys..If you help_ _ **us**_ _." The woman promised, after learning what had happened to the two children. She felt the need to do this. She felt like she owed it to someone, somewhere to help these two children. Though her daughter (of the same age) could not be with her, she knew that her daughter at least had her father. These two children? They had no one but each other. Kids can't take care of kids. This woman knew she owed it to these children after what she had done… "What do you say?" The woman asked, her red eyes relaxed yet sharp enough to cut into your soul._

" _...Okay." Nora responded with little to no hesitation. Ren looked at her, still unsure about his own decision. The woman smiled at Nora, and then looked over at Ren._

" _I suppose. It would be useful to learn how to fight." Ren shrugged. He had a strange feeling in his gut, however. He looked over towards Nora again only to find her touching her healing wound across her chest. It will scar, just like smaller wound on his own back, but he would rather have her alive. If this was the only way, then so be it._

 **(** _ **3 months later)**_

Ren and Nora did not make it out to Mistral like they had originally planned. Instead, they remained at the side of the woman who rescued them.

"Are you two sure you are prepared for this journey?" The woman asked, despite the fact that they have been travelling in the forest for an hour now.

"Yes." Nora smiled. "Hey, Raven?" the small girl asked, looking up at the tall woman.

She hissed when Nora said her name.

"Please don't call me that."

"Then… What _do_ I call you?" She was unsure. "Miss. Branwen? Or-"

"As long as it's not _mom_!" One of the men in her clan hollered. Suddenly, everyone was laughing except for Ren, Nora, and Raven. The two children didn't understand the joke, but many people in the clan did... and apparently it was a funny one.

"SILENCE!" Raven roared. Immediately, everyone went silent. It was obvious that this woman was one of the clan's leaders for they always listened to her orders. "Let the girl finish speaking." She suddenly looked down at Nora.

"I...was just going to say … I need to use the bathroom…" Nora smiled sheepishly. Raven sighed and rolled her eyes.

"... Come along, then." Raven placed her hand on Nora's back and reluctantly guided the child to a more secluded area of the forest for privacy.

 _ **(The very next day)**_

"I have a question!" Nora raised her finger high in the air. The small girl looked up at the dark-haired woman who has been reluctantly holding Nora's wrist so that she wouldn't run off ….again. The tribe was travelling, with Raven and the small girl leading the way on the path.

"Of course you do." Raven huffs. She had been dealing with Nora for only a few months now, but to Raven, it feels like it has been years. Raven thanks the creators that Ren was not as hyperactive as the girl.

"Why is the moon broken?" She asks.

"Why is the moon _broken_?" Raven repeats this, as though Nora's question was absolutely ridiculous. It was common knowledge. "What's next, you're going to ask me why the sky is blue? Or how our world started?"

"Well… I wasn't going to… but those are good questions too! Can you tell me, can you tell meee!?"

Raven finally looked away from the path ahead, and down at the girl; she found eager, bright green-blue eyes staring back up at her. Nora had a look in her eyes that Raven no longer possessed in herself: hopefulness, curiosity… _admiration?_?

If you were to look into Raven's eyes, the only things you would find are anguish, defeat, and fire.

"Where are the stars during the day time? How do people come up with stories? Where do babies come from? Is magic real? Why do people do things sometimes? What's the difference between like and like-like and love and love-love? Why are people mean to faunus? Why do people look different from each other? How does that happen?" Nora continued.

All rather good questions, actually.

Raven quickly began asking herself why she thought bringing this child along would even remotely help them with their mission. Of course, she knew the answer deep down.

 _She doesn't help. The boy is the one that helps us. But... the girl?_ Raven's guilt suddenly made her heart feel like it weighed 700 pounds. She thought about that village with the orphanage. She thought about the people.

Most of all, she thought about her own daughter.

Whenever Raven looked down at the girl, she hoped to find Yang smiling back up at her.

Every. Single. Time.

 _ **(One summer night, four months later)**_

"Thank you very much for your help." Ren said to Raven, who was sitting next to Nora on a different log a few feet away. "You did not need to share your canned goods with us, and yet you did." He smiled, motioning towards the cans of food the clan was sharing. "In fact, you didn't even need to take us along with you, or teach us to fight, and yet you did. It was a great gesture, and we will never forget your kindness." Ren was referring to how oddly generous Raven and the tribe had been with he and Nora these past few weeks. They would all stop for rest one night while Raven and a few other members would leave for several hours. Later, they would return with heaps of food, clothing, and other goods to share. The children, oblivious to how they gained these new items, were thankful. It felt like Dustmas every morning when they woke up with new possessions.

"Me tooooo!" Nora exclaimed, finally looking away from her food to turn and face Raven while bearing a messy grin. The woman sighed and wiped a napkin over the girl's dirty face, who proceeded to fight against it. "Nooo!" Whined the 8 year old. Ren laughed to himself at the interaction.

"Why do kids hate being clean?" Raven groaned in annoyance.

"Maybe you'd know by now if you cared about your _own_ instead of picking up randoms along the way." A sudden, dark voice said coldly from behind the two of them. This caused Nora to jump in freight, and Raven to roll her eyes. "You know you can't replace _her_ , right?" He laughed, motioning towards the scared child.

Raven would never admit that she was a _tad_ bit attached to the girl, however, the real reason the kids were here was much more important than just filling a void.

"Stop following us, Qrow. After your betrayal, your business around here is not welcome. Or.. **wanted**."

" _Business?_ " The man laughed, "You think that's what this is about? We were attached at the hip growing up, how could I just leave my baby sister so easily?" The man sat down next to Raven in between her and Nora, nearly shoving the small girl away in the process. He was the older twin and would never let it go.

"Leave." Raven said, placing her hand on her weapon.

"Oh, so that's how you treat your guests?! I'm hurt!" Qrow joked, shooting his eyes all around the campfire. Every member of the clan had a serious face with a hand on their weapons. They were waiting for Raven's cue. "Alright, I see. Fine. Listen, sis. I just came to tell you something."

"What?"

"Summer is dead." Qrow announced. Raven's red eyes grew wide and her mouth parted just a enough for a small gasp. Anyone could have sworn they saw concern and pain in that look, only for her to wash it away as if it never happened. Her mouth turned back into a straight line, her eyes piercing and cold. She waved off the other members who were watching, signaling that the situation was no longer a threat.

"Why is that of my concern?" Raven shrugged. She appeared nonchalant. Nora crawled over to Ren's log and sat next to him instead, a bit creeped out about the situation. She wrapped her arms around Ren's left arm like a sloth and held still. The clan went about their own business again, except for Nora who was eavesdropping. Ren decided it wasn't his business either and continued to eat.

"Wow, I thought you'd care about your best friend's whereabouts. Or... death." Qrow shook his head, slight anger vibrating throughout his body language.

"What for?"

"After you _abandoned_ your daughter, Summer came in to help." Qrow explained, his brain convincing him to spit venom. The man knew better, however. The harsher he sounded, the less Raven would listen. He was the same way. So is Yang.

Still listening, Nora's eyes grew wide and her breathing came to a halt.

"I already know this, Qrow. I may not have been around, but I know _some_ things," Raven rolled her eyes, "and I know Summer.. I know how she is..was. I knew she was going to _be there_ for _Taiyang_." Raven spat. It almost sounded as though she were trying to intentionally piss off Qrow, knowing that he had once taken a liking to Summer, many years ago.

"You don't know enough, apparently. Summer has a daughter, too."

"She has a _daughter_?" Raven asks, eyes wide.

"Yeah. Born five or six years back. Cute tyke."

"So you two _did_ get together?" Raven smirked. Qrow's eyes stared at her like she was insane. Her grin confirms that assumption.

"No. Summer had a child with **Tai**." He corrected. Raven's face displayed no reaction or emotion. Qrow knew this as the face she held whenever her mind was chaotic. He ignored it; there was absolutely **no** reason for Raven to be jealous about this.

"This family needs help now more than ever." Qrow insisted. It almost sounded as though he were begging Raven to come back into the life they all once had.

"Go help them, then." Raven shrugged him off, coldly.

"Guys?" Ren's small voice broke through their intense conversation.

"Not now kid," Qrow said, raising his right hand in Ren's direction. Qrow didn't even look at the boy while he stared at Raven who was sitting to his left. Raven gazed into the burning fire, face still lacking any emotion."You have a choice, Raven. _This…_ " Qrow motioned towards the messy wilderness and tribe members. "..doesn't **have** to be your life. Your family is more important. You know this, right?"

"This _is_ my family. And... you are drunk. Go home, Qrow. Make yourself useful and go take care of **that** family. Leave me be." She finally turned to look at him. The two met each other with sad eyes. They felt each others' pain, but would never admit to it. " _Please_." Raven whispered. When all he did was stare back at her, Raven stood up. She turned around completely and walked away from the campfire site, heading towards her tent. Qrow sighed and walked away from the clan. Eventually, the sounds of flapping wings could be heard as a crow flew away.

"Raven?" A clan-member said, walking over to the woman facing her tent. She was in deep thought.

"What now?" Raven hissed, turning around to face the man.

"Uh...Those kids...they're gone." The man said nervously, pointing towards the log Ren was sitting on.

"What!"

"Well, the little one ran away a while ago. Then the boy ran after her just a minute ago."

" **Why** didn't you tell me? Or follow them?"

"Well, I - uh"

"Idiot!" Raven scolded, whacking the man upside the head. Without warning, Raven had vanished from his line of vision. An actual raven was flying above him heading deeper into the forest in search of the two children.

Raven stopped flying when she noticed Ren walking through the forest. Raven flew down and went back to her human form, walking towards Ren.

"Why did you disappear like that?!" Raven hissed, grabbing Ren's left arm from behind him.

"Nora ran away. I'm trying to find her." Ren said.

Straight and to the point. Raven appreciated his behavior. It was not as childlike as you would expect from a nine year old.

"Very well." Raven said, peering through the forest.

"Over here." Ren announced, suddenly turning left. The woman was a bit surprised by his confidence.

"How are you so sure?"

"I don't know. I can just.. feel it. Hear it?" Ren questioned himself. His entire family had this same ability; he never had to think twice about it. Raven smiled: He would be even more helpful than she originally expected.

The two approached the sound of a crying girl, which Ren recognized instantly. "Nora?"

The tear-streaked face looked up to find Ren and Raven approaching her, Ren much more quickly than the woman. He was already at her side by the time Raven reached the two.

"Go away! Get away from me!" Nora shouted at Raven, getting up and running away a short distance before sitting down and crossing her arms again. Ren stood up, eyebrows raised in confusion and eyes wide.

"Why is she.. _doing that_?" Raven asked while awkwardly pointing a finger at the child.

"It's called an emotion. Nora's upset." He explained dryly, before turning to Nora. "Are you okay?" Ren asked, taking slow steps toward the girl. Raven kept her distance. She did not do well with anything that had to do with emotions.

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here… I'm not just some garbage, you know." Nora exclaimed once again in Raven's direction.

"But what have I done?!" Raven sneered, growing a bit impatient. She now remembers why she is bad with kids… er, people.

"How could you do that?! You just.. Just _abandon_ a daughter? Do you know how much that hurts her!" Nora shouted, holding her body and shaking. She is defending this 'daughter' in question, without even knowing a thing about her.

"I would rather die than relive through this life…" Nora was sobbing again.

Raven's face dropped, quickly realizing what this was about. She knew nothing of their actual past, but put the pieces together based off of Nora's reaction. Ren didn't know how to react, so he remained standing next to the girl and staring at his feet. He wasn't so sure Nora wanted any attention at the moment.

"You don't know the story. There was much more to that and as to why it had to happen." Raven explained, approaching Nora and standing directly in front of her while looking down at the girl. Raven saw in Nora's eyes exactly what she now found in her own: the curiosity and hopefulness turned to anguish and defeat.

"I don't think anything could make up for leaving a baby in the dust like that…" Nora whimpered and curled up against a tree. She just wanted her to leave. She wants to run away with Ren and go to Mistral, just like their original plan.

"What? I didn't simply _leave_ my daughter in the _dust_ , as you say. For a year I was with her and her father, actually. Afterwards, I was given a… _mission_." Raven hesitated on the last word. Her focus was on receiving Nora's forgiveness, not about being honest. "This mission is extremely dangerous. I can not risk her getting hurt. I **had** to leave. And so I did… she is with her father and uncle...and sister, apparently. She is not _alone_." Raven watched as the girl did not respond, but simply stare at the ground below her. "...Not like _you_ are."

Nora's head shot up and stared at Raven with the same expression as that of a deer in headlights.

"Clearly, you _have_ been abandoned, presumably since you were a baby? All you have is this young man here?" Raven motioned towards Ren. Nora nodded. "Not even a family member?" the small girl shook her head.

"No one at all.." Nora confessed in a small voice.

"All right, then. Well, if you help and stick with us here.. You'll be a part of the tribe. Our clan is much closer than the others. Which is … basically family." Raven shrugged.

"This mission you speak of sounds rather dangerous. You don't even want your own daughter associated with you. Why is it okay for _us_ to become involved?" Ren adds into the conversation.

"Smart boy. One question: What do you guys have to lose?" She negotiated.

Clearly defeated, the two children followed Raven back to the clan's campsite with Nora holding her hand. Though the two kids were skeptical and still a bit sad, they came to the realization that this is probably as good as life will ever get for them.

* * *

 **Ohh the angst.. Haha. Damn. What is Raven planning?**

 *** "Dustmas" - It's Remnant's version of Christmas, I guess. Haha.. I got this name idea from a fellow writer here on FF,** _ **Solora Goldsun**_ **. They have a fluffy one-shot called "Merry Dustmas," and it's amazing. I recommend it if you like team JNPR/Arkos/Renora.**

 **~I thank you once again for reading!~**


	8. Trifling Thievery

(I apologize to those of you who hate time-skips. Don't worry, their journey with Raven will be addressed in the future.)

 _ **(In Asgard, 2 years later)**_

"Heimdall." Thor declared, walking into the bifrost for the 2nd time that week.

"We meet again, Thor." Heimdall responds with no emotion in his voice. Thor had been doing this ever since he returned from the other realm. Every so often he would appear and demand to see his daughter. Most of the time, Heimdall would reject Thor's request and send him on his way.

"Show me Nora Valkyrie!" Thor demanded while pointing at him, as if Heimdall himself were a magical crystal ball.

"You know that is not how this works, right?" Heimdall exhaled, rather casually.

"Where is she?" Thor completely ignored him. Every once in awhile, Heimdall would simply show him Nora or tell him how she is doing. Today was a day he would rather refuse Thor. Thor took Heimdall's silence as a negative. "I will not take no for an answer!"

"Return another time. I am unable to help you today, sir." Heimdall said, stoic.

"You **will** show me my daughter." Thor threatened, not so casually anymore. He was tired of the guardian just being able to pick and choose which days he _felt_ like showing him his daughter. It is frustrating enough that Heimdall absolutely refuses to send him back to their realm.

"..Alright. I'll only show you, then." Heimdall went back to sounding casual, and rather reluctant. Did Thor notice the flash of sadness his face expressed? Perhaps not, but Heimdall proceeded to show Thor his daughter's current whereabouts.

 _ **(Remnant)**_

The two children had finally made it to Mistral a few months ago. It was a treacherous journey. Long travels and meeting new people; growing to them, only to become…...disappointed and broken. After a year and 3 months of growing and travelling with Raven and her tribe, the two silently vowed to never associate themselves with them ever again. The regret the two felt from their actions in the past made them want to never hear, speak, or even _think_ about it ever again.

Mistral was not how they had originally anticipated. The city itself was full of rather sketchy people and untrustworthy citizens. The refugee center denied them access for there was simply not enough room. The two still preferred to not go to the orphanage. Instead, the opted for living out on their own.

Many would easily ignore (or, not even notice) the two children sleeping on the ground; there were plenty of people living on the streets in Mistral. They looked defeated, cold, pale, skinny, bruised, tired, hungry. Today, they were leaning against a building in an alleyway, but still close enough to the sidewalk for pedestrians to see... if they ever even bothered to look down, that is. Every once in awhile, the children got lucky and a citizen with enough pity would drop them a lien or two. By the end of the day, this would give them enough to split one small meal. Today, however, was considered a _good_ day for them. This was what Nora's father had been watching. Above, thunder could be heard. Thor was angered. He didn't approve of the current predicament his child was in, _but no one knew about that._ Nora didn't even know.

"Wasn't me this time." Nora mumbled, her eyes still closed and head resting on Ren's shoulder.

"I know." Ren responds, his eyes closed as well. Ever since the discovery of her semblance, they have both somewhat deducted that her _power_ could lead to a stormcloud or two. They haven't exactly discussed it further since neither of them understood it for sure. The two children rubbed the sleep out of their eyes and stood up, grabbed the pity-Lien, and made their way to the edge of the forest.

 _ **(Meanwhile in Asgard)**_

"I can not sit idle while she dies!" Thor stormed. Quite literally, for thunder could be heard all over the realm. Heimdall still refused to send Thor back to Remnant. To him, Thor was like an annoying teen throwing a tantrum.

"The girl knows how to survive, Thor." Heimdall won't say it out loud, but Nora is a lot more like Thor than even Thor realizes.

"She deserves to live peacefully in Asgard." Thor stated.

"You _know_ the exact reason as to why that can not happen. Do you wish for her to suffer the same fate as her mother?" Heimdall tried to reason with him. Thor never spoke of Brunnhilde, for it felt wrong. Yet, Heimdall was able to simply pull out the topic as if nothing had happened.

"Perhaps things will be different." Thor tried.

"At best, she will have her memory removed to become a low-class citizen. Or prisoner. Or even a valkyrie, if Odin really liked her." Heimdall stated, both men knowing that the latter was an extremely slim chance.

"He should give his grand daughter a chance.." Thor trailed off, slightly struggling to compose the right words. He knew there was no arguing with Heimdall.

"Also, if you do bring her _back_ to Asgard," Heimdall began, adding emphasis on the ' _back_ '. "What will you do with her mortal friend? The two have proven to be inseparable."

"She will think nothing of him once she is here." Thor stated, simply. He had slight animosity towards the child ever since he was seen wielding Mjölnir, and now even more spending so much time with his own daughter. Heimdall's face went hard and he stopped showing Thor his daughter.

"Like father like son." Heimdall said, coldly.

"No, I won't force her to forget. She simply will, after a few years. She is but a child."

"That is the most incorrect string of words I have ever heard you put together. Thor, please just exit the bifrost." Heimdall states with a face-palm, growing tired of Thor.

Heimdall could see, he always sees. He knows. The two won't separate without a _fight._

 _ **(Mistral, Remnant)**_

Few days later, the main city street was closed off due to open market day. All small businesses came together in a flea-market fashion and decided to sell their products. Citizens always attended to see the many different products the vendors had to sell. It was quite beautiful, really: The lights that hung from lamp post to lamp post, the many different colors and products on each vendor's table. Warm July weather and sun reflecting against all things metal: everyone loved it. The two children couldn't resist themselves, even if they were poor as dirt.

Ren had his back turned for 2 minutes until he heard an old man yell, " **STOP THAT CHILD!"**

Ren automatically turned around and saw Nora dash away from the street. He sighed, knowing what she had done... _again_. He figured now was his chance. He swiped some fruits and ran off in a different direction. Not 20 minutes later did the two meet up by the edge of the city and forest. This had become their usual meet-up spot.

"Look what I got us!" Nora exclaimed excitedly, dangling two braided bracelets in front of his face with one hand and holding chocolates in another. He gave her a blank expression and raised his eyebrow. "Okay, okay...I know: they're both pink.. _buuut_...I like it! It matches your eyes! Maybe you could sorta kinda wear it?" Nora smiled sheepishly at the 11 year old. He was even taller now, having been through a growth spurt or two. "It can be our best friends forever bracelets!" Nora squeaked. Ren was used to her antics by now, having spent nearly every waking moment for the last two years with the girl. "I mean, you don't have to wear it…" Nora continued, shyly looking down at the bracelets in her hand.

As a response to her ramblings, Ren simply extended his wrist. The quiet boy smiled at her reaction.

"Eeeek! Yay!" Nora said excitedly and began tying one of the bracelets around his wrist. When she finished, Ren then took the second bracelet from Nora's hand and began tying it around her wrist for her, without needing to be asked. Their endearing moment was interrupted by her stomach growls. "Uhh..heh.." Nora was suddenly embarrassed; the original objective was to take _food_. Not jewelry or _sweets._ Ren shook his head disapprovingly at the cupcakes she also carried with her in her bag. She has become quite proficient in stealing multiple things.

Ren instead handed Nora the mango he had swiped earlier. Luckily, he was extremely sneaky and was often able to share his goods with his younger friend since she often went after things that satisfied her sweet tooth. He _wanted to_ care for her, after all.

The two headed a little deeper into the forest together, where they actually had a spot for themselves to "live." There was a tree with a massive hole in the trunk; this is where Ren and Nora stashed all of their belongings. They have accumulated very few things over the past two years: the book that holds a special place in their hearts, about 3 changes of clothes (luckily), and some blankets (but only 1 pillow). Nora couldn't successfully steal her pillow that time; she had gotten caught, but thankfully the store manager didn't pursue any legal action against the girl. Instead, the duo shared the pillow, sleeping right next to each other. It wasn't weird to them, even though they knew it _probably_ should be.

But they didn't care: survival was their main objective. After all, it really helped with the nightmares.

After finishing half of her mango, Nora had decided to save the rest for her best friend. They never knew when their next meal would come. She offered him a bite, and he gratefully took it.

"I want to go to school." Nora said. Ren coughed on his mango bite, and Nora began patting his back.

"Why, Nora?" Ren asked. This was the first time he spoke that day.

"Well you see I just… the thing is... we, I,.. you.." Nora stammered. She had many points to make, but the order was a mess in her head. Her eyebrows stitched together.

"Nora, remember what I told you?" Ren helped.

He encouraged her to pause and think for a few seconds. He was patient. He watched her face, eyes shut and all, while she was thinking.

He smiled to himself. He was proud of her improvements, even if no one else would notice. Nora _is_ incredibly smart. Like anyone else, however, she struggles in an area or two.

"Umm..Okay, well..One: You want to be a huntsman. Don't they go to school first?" Ren nods ' _yes'_ to her question, "And, two….well, you need to practice..fighting and stuff, and if you're going then I wanna go too! And three, I want to be a teacher but I can't do it if I don't know much..." Nora scratched her chin, ideas flowing through her mind. "I could be a huntress with you! And then I can teach other people how to become huntsmen and huntresses! We can protect people together!" Nora exclaimed excitedly, shooting her fist in the air. Thunder rumbled in the clouds above them. "Oops!" Nora instantly pulled her hand back down, sheepishly. Her cheeks turned pink. She got a bit too excited in planning their future.

She was more open to the idea of becoming a huntress ever since she faced a small beowolf in the forest last year. She defeated it with just a fork and her two fists. She enjoyed the rush it gave her. Ren had to admit, she was extremely strong, even without her semblance. How she was able to handle the small grimm was beyond him. Raven's training was helpful, but neither of them had weapons.

"Can we just talk about how your semblance affects the weather?" Ren asked, almost comically. Staring up at the sky, he was distracted by the thunder.

"Um….not ..always…" Nora says in a low voice, sulking in her spot by the tree. Ren snapped his head in her direction and glared.

"Nora! Not again!" _Of course. How else could she have run so fast back at the markets?_

"I'm sorry! I just like the feeling!" Nora giggled.

"Please, for the love of dust, stop sticking things in electrical outlets."

"You ruin everything, I swear!" Nora pushed him, though her sentence was not serious at all. "Oh! I'm sorry!" Nora exclaimed as he groaned a bit. She accidentally shocked him _again_. He was getting used to it by now.

* * *

 **Please give me any advice you have to offer =) I would appreciate it so much! I'm not a writer so I know for a fact I must have some mistakes in here haha!**

 **Happy New Year!**


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